Dream Themes
by dizappearingirl
Summary: A handful of DP oneshots inspired by my dreams. Newest chapter: He promised them he would hide and he would...even if it killed him.
1. Don't Find Me

**Dizgirl: **Hey y'all! I promised those in my forum I'd put these up so here we are! This is a collection of one-shots based off of my many DP dreams. Since my dreams are diverse (and very vivid) these shall vary when it comes to topics, genres, details, viewpoints, etc. Who knows where my dreams will take me next? Even I don't know where they will take me! But I do hope you enjoy these because I certainly loved writing them! Oh and by the way, this first one-shot takes place during TUE but due to the circumstances of my dream, Danny already has his ice powers!

Disclaimer? See my profile! Enjoy and love!

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**Don't Find Me**

He couldn't handle this anymore. The emptiness that ached inside him would never leave. He was sure of it. The grief and the pain were too real, too close to him. They constantly pressed in on him, shadowing his every move and every mood. What was it like to be happy? Those glowing memories were fading into the back of his mind, the murky images that had happened only weeks ago taking over. All he could remember were their faces…and the heat. The heat he could still feel sometimes late at night. The heat that burned him and his family but didn't kill him. It should have, but his ghost half 'saved' him.

And no one else.

Danny stood up abruptly, his blue eyes glazed over with too many emotions and thoughts. With a heavy sigh he transformed slowly into his ghost side, the feeling of weightlessness not easing the strain he felt across his chest. _I can't handle this. I can't…not anymore. I need to let go, but how?_

He looked up towards the top of the stone vaulted ceiling of the entrance way to Vlad's Wisconsin castle. It was hard to trust the older halfa but Danny didn't have anyone else. Besides, his parent's had put Vlad down as his parental guardian in their will in case something ever happened to them. He squeezed his eyes shut again the throbbing pain that cut through his stomach every time he thought of them. And not only them but Jazz, Sam, and Tucker too. His fault. It was his fault.

Before he fully realized it, Danny was floating up through the ceiling and into the chilly afternoon air. The cool breeze did little to ease the pain, but any small relief was welcome. _If only it was colder_. So cold it would numb him of all the grief within. He looked down at his white-gloved hands dazedly. But he could make it colder with the new power he had discovered only a few weeks before the Nasty Burger accident. Both hands suddenly glowed an electric blue, causing the temperature of the air surrounding him to plummet. He closed his eyes and his face relaxed as the cold worked its way into his already cool body. This was definitely better than the stifling warmth of the castle fires.

He reopened his eyes, now an icy blue, and blasted the nearest tree with the sparkling energy from his hands. The pine crackled as ice shot up the trunk and spread among the branches. Then he turned and fired at another tree, this one also quickly coated with ice. Danny flew forward into the forest, continuing to ice every tree he could aim at with his hands and his eyes. Taking all the emotions churning inside of him, he angrily shot the icy energy anywhere he could, crying out as the new power took its toll. He sped up and chucked blast after blast, not caring that his body was gradually slowing down as he used all the energy within him. _I don't care anymore!_ Danny pushed himself harder, the trees now a blur of brown, green, and frozen white. _I __**won't**__ care anymore!_

After expending all the energy he could, he finally landed on a ridge overlooking a dry riverbed. The sun had disappeared behind a blanket of gray clouds that covered the sky completely. Muted light filled the forest, dully reflecting off the ice covering all the pines around him. Panting, he watched the sky whiten and slowly release thousands of white specks that floated quietly down onto the forest floor. _Snow…it's snowing_. Danny held out one hand and watched as snowflakes gathered on it, not even melting because his body was so cold. He took a step forward, slipped over the edge of the bank, and tumbled into the bottom of the riverbed. Landing on his hands and knees, he knelt there as snow piled around him. The snow and ice were freezing but still the fire burned within him. Could he ever be numb of these feelings? Could he ever escape?

The faces of his family and friends surfaced again in his mind. The anger and confusion at finding out he had cheated on the test. The worry and concern for the reason why he had made that desperate choice. The shock and surprise as the Nasty Burger roared into a flaming inferno, blowing them away….And him, watching it all and surviving to tell the tale. He cheated and his whole family and two best friends suffered for it. Danny jumped back up onto his feet, breathing heavily despite the fact he didn't need to in his ghostly form.

"It's my fault! It's all my fault!" he screamed into the darkening forest. "It's all my fa—" The scream abruptly changed into a ghostly wail, echoing eerily among the ice covered trees. He maintained it, letting all his emotions pour into the waves of green energy, tears slipping down his cheeks with the effort. He quickly used the rest of his spectral energy and the wail faded away, leaving him in a white t-shirt and jeans.

Danny collapsed to his knees, shaking slightly from overexertion. He then fell onto his back, the snow covering the ground thick enough now to almost bury him completely. _I don't think I can handle this anymore_. A rumble to his right only gave him slight warning as more snow slid down the river bank and pushed its way on top of his shivering body. He didn't move, wondering idly if the glittering snow would finally give him the numb feeling he sought out. Closing his eyes, Danny tried to clear his mind of all thoughts except the cold, but more images came to his mind unbidden despite his attempts at blocking them out.

There was his family fighting off the possessed hot dogs that had jumped from the Fenton Hot Dog Cooker for the third time, Jack yelling about how he was sure he could figure out the kinks the next time while Maddie fought them off with her machete. _I can't handle this. I just want it to be gone. _

"Daniel!" Danny closed his eyes as he heard the familiar voice call out, sounding muffled as he lay in the snow. _No, don't find me._

There was Jazz sitting at the kitchen table, reading the biggest book Danny had ever seen. She had one finger holding her place as she argued with their father about the validity of the existence of ghosts and whether or not they could even be captured or dissected anyways. _Don't find me. Don't find me._

And there was his mom with her doubled ended glowing staff, fending off the animal ghosts Vlad had sent after him in the forest on their DALV trip. He had seen her fight before, but nothing like that. She was absolutely amazing. _Please don't find me!_

"Daniel?!" _Please…_

His father Jack was next, jumping up and down excitedly as he brandished his newest invention that was most likely going to try and kill Danny the moment it turned on. His eyes twinkled with elation and he wouldn't stop babbling about all its magnificent qualities and how it would revolutionize the ghost weapon industry.

"Daniel!!!" _Just leave me alone! Please!_

Then there was Tucker, his fingers flying over a video game controller as he tried desperately to defeat both Danny and Sam at one of their favorite games. He was concentrating so hard he never even saw both friends share amused looks as Sam won for the seventh time in a row. _No more…no more!_

And last was Sam, her face white with terror as she tumbled over the edge of the speeding Circus Gothica train. He flew as fast as he could, dropping Freakshow's staff in the process as his ruby (and then emerald) eyes connected with her own violet ones. Her voice echoed in his head as Danny shivered uncontrollably, face wet with icy tears. _"Danny!"_

_Please…don't find me…_

_I can't…_

_I can't…my fault._

"Daniel."


	2. Something Isn't Right

**Dizgirl:** Look, another dream I had! Actually I only kinda half had this one and the rest just sorta bloomed in my head the next day. Whatev! Still inspired by my DP dream! I know it kinda ends oddly but that's where it ended in my head (and my dream) so...I might if I really get excited continue this at one point. Maybe. Well, enjoy and love!

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**Something Isn't Right**

With a sigh Maddie opened her amethyst eyes, staring at the darkened ceiling. It was always difficult to sleep when her husband was gone and tonight was no exception. She **had** managed to fall asleep for a few fitful hours but a muted noise had awakened her. This wasn't too surprising; you can hear almost anything when you aren't wearing Fenton earplugs. Maddie tried to ignore the low beeping drifting faintly from below her. After several unsuccessful attempts to block the noise using her pillow she sat up, brushing one ungloved hand through her tousled bronze hair.

"Please stop," she moaned, pinching her eyes shut. Unfortunately the noise only grew louder…and faster? Slightly curious and mostly awake, Maddie opened her door and shuffled to the top of the stairs, pulling her teal robe on with one hand as the other stifled a yawn. The noise was definitely coming from below, probably the family room or kitchen. She could hear it clearly now. What could it be? Was it a machine? One of their ghost weapons?

Or…or maybe a ghost!

This thought pushed any notions of sleep from her mind and she felt her heart jump with adrenaline. Creeping silently down the carpeted steps, she reached for her waist where her pack of ghost weapons usually rested. But her hand only grabbed a fistful of cloth. _Right, I'm not in my hazmat suit,_ she thought, cursing quietly under her breath. _Now what?_

Maddie crouched low to the ground as she stepped off onto the first floor of her home. Nothing moved and the only sound she could hear was the incessant beeping. Following the noise she made her way into the kitchen. There on the table that was unusually clean with Jack's absence was a small metal box.

"What?" she whispered softly, walking up to the table's edge. She peered down at the beeping machine, catching sight of a soft red flow coming from the other side. Puzzled, Maddie cautiously moved around the table, not daring to touch the strange device. As she did, the rate of the beeping picked up, sending goose bumps down her arms and back. _Something isn't right, _she thought nervously, but then she was distracted by the glow that came from one number blinking on the side of the machine: 19.

"Nineteen?" Maddie asked in confusion. The machine beeped rapidly and the number changed to eighteen…and then seventeen.

"Seven—a bomb! A **bomb**!" She gasped, jumping back from the table. "How did that—oh, Danny!" she spun around and sped back into the front room.

"Danny!" she yelled, practically flying up the stairs. "Wake up! We need to leave **now**!" She stumbled over the last step but caught herself and kept moving. Reaching her son's door Maddie ripped it open, screaming his name.

"Danny! Danny!" The dark outline of her sleepy son sat up in his bed. She couldn't hear his mumbled reply over the pounding of her heart in her chest, but it didn't matter. "Get up! There's a bo—"

A deafening roar filled her ears as the small box detonated. Burning light rushed up from the floor below and the whole house shuddered under waves of explosive energy. The blast threw her down the hallway, knocking her off her feet. She cried out as she slammed into the wall, squeezing her eyes shut against the heat and pain racing up her back. Maddie crumpled to the ground, her head spinning. Slowly the stars dancing across the inside of her eyes fell into darkness as did the thundering crashes of parts of her house collapsing around her. By the time the dust started to settle, she had fallen into oblivion.


	3. I'm Wearing Gray

**Dizgirl: **Funny...these keep getting shorter. Oh well, so be it! This one is more of a drabble than an one-shot but it still came from a dream I had. The dream itself was blurry but the feelings coming from it were strong and I hope I get some of them across within this. Enjoy and love!

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**I'm Wearing Gray**

I ran away. It was cowardly I know, but I was so afraid that if I stopped for a moment my memories would catch up with me. Stupid of me really. I would never forget them ever. No matter how far I ran and how hard I tried they would always be with me, eating at my mind like acid and burning up any portion of me they possible didn't touch while they were alive. And that's the hardest part; they touched every part of me. Somehow they became a bigger part of my life than I ever thought possible, both when they were alive and now as they are dead.

I can say that now, the words I tried to hide from my conscious mind for years. I can say that they are dead. That they are never coming back. That the only things I have left are those acidic memories and a gaping hole within my chest that aches emptily, begging to be filled with anything but my lonely cries. But it will never be filled again. I'm starting to realize that now. This loneliness that pulls at my heart—or where my heart should be—will never disappear. Even though I try to say that it will get better I know it won't. I'm okay with that too. I'm okay with living with their absence for the rest of my life. I'm ready to never smile again. I'm ready to never cry again. I'll let that hole consume me until I'm as empty as it. Then all that will be left are their memories and my determination to never let them fade. Never let their story be forgotten. Never.

I'm mourning openly now. You don't realize it though because I'm not wearing black. I'm wearing gray. When I started to bleach my clothes you thought I was getting better, that I was moving past my pain. You'll never understand. I always wore black. It was my statement to the world, my mark on society. Continuing to wear black now would be like saying it never happened. That life continued on without them. But it didn't. Not for me and soon not for you either. I'll show you that forgetting them will be worse than losing them. Their memories will live on and I'll prove to the world that the death of the Fenton's meant something more than you will ever comprehend.


	4. Can You Last?

** Dizgirl**: So I had this dream a while back and I started writing it but then life got in the way and I haven't really worked on it until tonight. But look, I finished it! Yay! I struggled with this one a bit because I had to make it make sense (since dream logic hardly ever makes complete sense in real life). And it took a while but I have to say I'm rather proud of the end result. I hope you enjoy and love it too! Oh, and if there are errors or stuff that doesn't make sense, tell me kay? Ah well, enjoy and love anyways right?

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**Can You Last?**

"As a ghost I can do this all day, Daniel," Vlad taunted, his voice echoing through the empty aisles. Danny remained where he was crouched behind a display of the newest Dumpty Humpty CD, trying to catch his breath. Each gasp stabbed his lungs like a knife and sucked a little more of his remaining energy away. How much longer he could last without his ghost powers even he couldn't decide. Judging by the sweat pouring down his back and the numbness seeping up his legs it couldn't be much longer.

'_If only I had one of Dad's ghost weapons. Then I would be able to wipe that smirk off his face!'_ he thought vehemently. Unfortunately, the only weapons he normally carried with him were the thermos and his mom's lipstick that acted as a miniature laser. Both were now with Sam and Tucker for when they escaped Vlad and his ghost minions throughout the store. That had been before he had lost his ghost powers to the Plasmius Maximus…again. The plan had worked and his two friends were long gone, but now he was defenseless.

"How much longer can you last?" Vlad continued, chuckling. The young teen stiffened; he was getting closer. Taking a deep breath, he jumped up and sprinted down the closest aisle, hoping Vlad hadn't noticed his latest attempt to evade him. A bright magenta blast over his right shoulder was Danny's answer. He ducked behind a large bin of giant exercise balls, cursing his bad luck.

Still breathing heavily he looked around for something to use as a weapon or possibly an escape he hadn't discovered yet. Vlad had already sealed the obvious exits from the Target after the handful of customers and employees had fled. Sam and Tucker had left through an air vent shortly after that, but Vlad thwarted Danny's every effort to join them. Now he had nowhere to go and little energy left to use. Even if he had access to his ghost half he probably didn't have the strength to use it. He'd either have to battle his way out as a human or wait for Team Phantom to come up with a rescue plan.

Quiet footsteps brought Danny's attention back to the present. He tried to silence his noisy breathing but his tired body hungrily craved the oxygen. Closing his eyes briefly he pictured the layout of a normal Target store. At the moment he was towards the back on the left side of the building, far away from the public entrance and where Vlad's underlings were. Vlad had followed him—forced him more like it—into this area of the store, taunting him the whole way. And now he was coming up behind Danny, slowly walking towards his poor hiding spot. Any second he'd appear to Danny's right and take him who knew where. He was **not **going down, not when he could still keep running.

Jumping up for what seemed the fiftieth time that night, Danny stumbled towards the toy section of the store, hoping to find better hiding spots and maybe a way to escape. More blasts followed him but not a single one hit. Danny growled within his head, breathing too hard to actually make a noise. The fruitloop was **mocking** him, chasing him around the store like a trapped animal that had escaped from its cage until he gave in. But he would **not **give in!

Danny skidded around a corner, almost ramming his shoulder into a display of robotic action figures, and dashed down a new empty aisle. His shoes hardly had a grip on the slick white linoleum, which nearly sent him falling several times. He kept moving forward, though, ignoring the cramp on his left side and numbness in his fingers and feet. He had to keep going. He couldn't stop or Vlad would get him. Who knew what cracked up plans the older halfa had for him this time?

Finally, after searching the rows, Danny found a small niche between two huge crates full of unpacked school supplies for the upcoming fall. He collapsed between them and wiped the sweat from his forehead, realizing with surprise that he was trembling from exertion and feeling lightheaded. He attempted to slow his breathing but his lungs were out of control, still trying to maintain his elevated heart rate. The rapid pounding resonated throughout his body, making the desperate situation all the more real. How long **could** he last?

"Take as long as you like, Daniel," Vlad said, his voice still far enough away that Danny felt temporarily safe. "I have no need to rush." Danny scowled at the space in front of him. Of course he didn't need to rush. Vlad had nothing else to do except count his money and create plots to capture him and kill his father. Like Danny had said so often before, the older man was one seriously crazed up fruitloop. _'Who knows what he's doing,'_ Danny added angrily. He could make fun of Vlad all he wanted but he couldn't deny that his archenemy was good. It was mainly luck that had saved him in their previous battles. _'Luck I don't seem to have…'_

A crash to his right jarred Danny from his thoughts, making him jump and hit one of the crates. Silently rubbing his shoulder, he listened for the culprit. Quiet cursing reached his ears and Danny grinned appreciatively. It sounded like Vlad was not as patient as he claimed. The smile slowly disappeared though when he realized how close the crash had been. _'Time to move.'_

Danny struggled to his feet, still panting and trembling. His vision blurred temporarily and he swayed, feeling even more lightheaded than before. Taking a deep breath, he exhaled noisily and waited as the bright spots disappeared from his eyes. Then, he took off running down the aisle to his left, aiming for the clothing department within the store. There were plenty of hiding spots among the racks of clothes and there might be away for him to break out through the front. His stomach leapt at the thought of finally escaping this nightmare.

Jumping over a fallen pile of paper towel rolls, Danny glanced behind him to see if Plasmius was following. _'Aw crap!'_ he thought as the glowing form of his archenemy came into view from the aisle he had just left_. 'Can't he just leave me alone?!' _The sly grin on Vlad's face was answer enough and Danny doubled his efforts. But he was still losing ground. There was no way he'd make it to the clothes racks.

He paused, thinking quickly, before disappearing down the row to his left. Racing past basketballs and tennis rackets, Danny concentrated on forcing his lungs to continue breathing. His vision spun, sending the off-white shelves on both sides spiraling around him. He staggered around the corner and fought against his legs' desire to collapse. _'Gotta keep going…keep going!' _he reminded himself.

Vlad's low chuckling sent a thrill of fear through Danny and kept him moving. _'Not here…not now!' _He struggled to keep his momentum and managed to turn down the next aisle. If he could confuse Vlad maybe he could buy himself more time. Maybe Team Phantom would be here soon. Maybe he would make it…maybe he wouldn't. His breaths were short and sharp, slicing his chest each time he inhaled. The surrounding brightly-colored camping equipment blurred and spun, disorienting him. Danny blinked several times and jogged down the aisle and into the next without pausing to check the older halfa's position. But despite the numbness creeping up his body, he could still hear Vlad's steady footsteps directly behind him.

Danny broke into a labored sprint, not bothering to see where he was headed. Desperation clawed at his insides, making his frantic heartbeat and erratic breathing deafening. The footsteps didn't fade. He glanced up in time to see a large shelf full of sports equipment loom above him. Too late he realized he needed to turn to the right or left. With a muffled thud and noisy clanging Danny ran into the metal shelf and fell back, sprawling out on the linoleum floor.

He closed his eyes, utterly exhausted. Even the hysterical voice in his head screaming that Vlad would get him if he didn't move couldn't persuade him to stand up. What was the point? More running and hiding? How much more of that could he do? His body was pushed way past the point most humans could take. Actually, he was probably still conscious only because he was half ghost. And his senses were slowly failing one by one. His chest didn't even hurt where it had crashed into the shelf and he couldn't feel his legs at all. A small noise reminded him he wasn't alone.

"Though he is far below me when it comes to level of power, Skulker does have useful advice every once in a while," Plasmius stated behind Danny, his steady voice barely containing his triumph. "He is the "greatest hunter" in the Ghost Zone after all." Danny's lungs burned and it was hard to concentrate on the words Vlad was speaking when each breath shot through him like icy fire.

"He once told me that there are several ways to capture a prey without permanently damaging it that require little energy from the hunter," Vlad continued, oblivious to Danny's semi-conscious state. "Though all his ideas were worth remembering one in particular stood out in my mind. He said that if possible the hunter should try to corner his prey until it had nowhere left to hide, until all it could do was run itself into the ground as it tried to escape the hunter. I believe you might know this concept better as a 'you can run but you can't hide' scenario."

Two gloved hands grabbed Danny roughly by the shoulders and half-lifted him off the ground. He hung limp and numb, not bothering to fight the tight grip or the blackness creeping in around him. In fact, he welcomed the darkness as his only escape. When he awoke, he could try to fight but not now. He would run from Vlad for a little longer. Ominous laughter filled his ears as he disappeared into unconsciousness.


	5. Where Do Ghosts Live?

**Dizgirl: **Lookie, I'm back! This dream took place a while ago and I wasn't sure if I should write it. Then I realized that all the chapters so far had been rather…depressing or suspenseful. This DP dream was completely different! So here is some fluffy sibling fluff! In my dream it was actually my sister and I, but I definitely work as Jazz and my sister could pull off Danny…sorta. Enjoy and love!

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**Where Do Ghosts Live?**

"Jazz?" The young redhead looked up into the large blue eyes of her brother. He was peering over the edge of the kitchen table where she was finishing her homework. His two hands gripped the table tightly as he struggled to look over it.

"What?" she asked, scribbling an answer to the multiplication problem on her worksheet.

"What's a ghost?" Jazz's head snapped up and she gaped at him incredulously.

"You know what a ghost is! Mom and Dad talk about them **all** the time!" Danny shuffled around the edge of the table and pulled himself into a chair.

"Nuh uh!" he argued, grunting as he struggled for balance. "Are they people?" Jazz scowled, turning back to her worksheet.

"Mom says they were people but now they're not," she answered swiftly, trying to avoid Danny's constant questioning. Once he started, he never stopped. Of course answering his first question had not been the smartest idea in the first place.

"How can they not be people if they were people?"

"There are lots of things that aren't people. Animals aren't people!" Jazz reminded him as if that put an end to the conversation.

"Ghosts are **animals**?" Danny cocked his head to the side in confusion.

"No!" Jazz groaned.

"So what are they?"

"I don't know!" Jazz picked up her homework and slid off her seat. She quickly walked away, grumbling about younger brothers and stupid questions. As she packed up her backpack, which currently lay sprawled on the couch in the front room, she heard her brother follow from behind.

"Where do ghosts live?" Jazz spun around to face Danny who smiled innocently. She wanted to lash out at him for annoying her while doing her homework, but she reminded herself that the only way to keep him quiet was to answer his questions or ignore them in the first place. She no longer had the luxury of doing the second. Besides, hitting or yelling at him would only make her parents angry.

"In the Ghost Zone," Jazz sighed in resignation. His eyes lit up with recognition.

"Mommy and Daddy are making a portal to the Ghost Zone!" he proudly stated. Jazz rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I know." She waited for his next question, but he remained silent. Smiling triumphantly, she marched past him and headed for the stairs.

"What's a portal?" Apparently the silence only meant he was thinking of more maddening questions. Jazz moaned as she turned around again.

"Dad says it's like a door, but it's not finished yet."

"What's it look like?" Danny fiddled with his shirt, oblivious to her frustration.

"I don't know! It's in the basement." His eyes widened again and he turned towards the kitchen where the door to their parent's lab stood.

"In** there**?" he whispered. Jazz nodded. "Wow!"

"Yep," Jazz agreed before heading up to her room. As she climbed the stairs, she could hear Danny gasp before stumbling to catch up with her.

"What's the Ghost Zone look like?"

"Why would I know? I'm not a ghost!" Jazz grumbled, opening her bedroom door. Danny made to follow her but she held him back. "No way! This is **my** room!"

"But!"

"Nuh uh! You can't come in!" she proclaimed as she swung her door shut in his face. It only took a few seconds for her to hear sniffling coming from outside her room. Realizing that Danny crying would only bring her parents down from the attic where they were building something they called the Ops-Center, Jazz sighed and opened her door. Two watery blue eyes watched her as she stepped out into the hallway.

"Don't cry," she murmured. Danny sniffed, but wiped his eyes and smiled weakly. She smiled back and searched for a way to make him feel better. Finally she said, "I bet it's dark in the Ghost Zone. Ghosts like the dark."

"They do?"

"Yep, and I bet it's really scary, like Halloween," she continued, enjoying the awed look on his face.

"Is it like a forest?" he asked almost fearfully. Jazz shrugged, baffled by the question. Where did that come from?

"Maybe…it could be like a jungle full of wild animals!"

"Animal ghosts?" Danny wondered out loud. She nodded vigorously, grinning as their make-believe Ghost Zone came to life.

"We could go there and see all the scary ghosts!" Jazz whispered gleefully. "We'd have to be really sneaky, like wear dark clothes and stay real quiet."

"Shhh…" Danny agreed, bringing a finger to his lips.

"We can't let them find us or else…" Jazz paused, unsure of what they would do. Danny held his hand to his mouth and spoke through his fingers.

"They'd eat us?" he squeaked, his eyes large with fear and excitement.

"Maybe." The two siblings stared at each other, the thrill of an adventure sending shivers down their spines. Deepening her voice dramatically she asked, "Do you want to see the portal?"

"Mommy and Daddy said not to go down there," Danny reminded her, shaking his head.

"But," she tried to think of something that would make him come with her into the lab. Normally she wasn't one to break the rules either, but talking about the portal pricked her curiosity. What **was** the Ghost Zone like?

"If we don't go how will we know what it looks like?" Jazz offered, scrambling for more reasons. "Mom and Dad are in the attic right now; they won't find out." Danny hesitated so she grabbed his hand and dragged him into her room. Completely distracted, he grinned and began to wander around.

"Wow, what's that?" Jazz sighed and stepped in front of her brother.

"It doesn't matter 'cause we're going to the Ghost Zone! Come on, help me get ready," she commanded him.

"How?"

"By helping me decide what to pack," she grabbed a little Winnie-the-Pooh bag that hung on the end of her bed and held it up. "What should we take?"

"I dunno..."

"Hmmm…I bet we'll need food. Ghosts don't eat food." Jazz looked around her room for inspiration. "And we need to change into dark clothes so they can't see us." Danny nodded, but seemed to be losing interest.

"What else, what else?" she prompted him, prodding his shoulder to regain his attention. "We're exploring the **Ghost Zone**! It will be an adventure!"

"Like the guy on TV with the hat?" he put his hands on his head. "And the snakes and the **big **ball!"

"You mean Indiana Jones," Jazz corrected him. "Yeah, just like that."

"Coool!" Danny exclaimed. After that, the two scoured their rooms for items to take down into the laboratory. They also pulled out a dark blue sheet from the hall closet and cloaked themselves in the material, giggling the whole time.

"Ready?" Jazz asked her brother as they stepped into the kitchen. Her bag bumped against her back and she felt the edge of the ruler she had found on her desk poking her. Danny held a mini flashlight on a key chain, grinning as he turned it on and off.

"Yeah! We're gonna kick some ghost butt!"

"No, we're just going to go **look**," Jazz reminded him. Danny's grin turned quickly into a pout. "But…I guess we might have to fight some ghosts…" The smile was back and his blue eyes sparkled. The two siblings faced the large door leading down into the basement, hugging the sheet tighter around their shoulders.

"Okay…we're going into the Ghost Zone," Jazz said, gathering her courage before it could disappear into doubt and fear. She reached up for the shiny door knob, biting her lip as she gripped the cold metal. "Ready?"

"Yeah," Danny whispered next to her. She made to twist the knob and…

"What?" she gasped, pulling and then pushing on the wooden door. "It's…it's locked!" Danny pushed next to her and she continued to wring the knob, but the door didn't budge.

"Aw…" Danny moaned disappointedly. He sat down right there, pouting again. Jazz followed his example and sunk to the floor.

"But I really wanted to see what it looked like," she complained, glaring at the golden knob. Above them there was a thump and then the stomping footsteps of their father.

"Jazzerincess? Danny boy? Where are you?"

"Right here!" Danny called, jumping up from under the sheet and racing towards the stairs. Jazz stood up and gathered the dark blue material into a clump in her arms. Sending one last look at the basement door she followed her brother into the front room sullenly.

"I really, really did."

((Years later))

"Danny…we shouldn't be down here, unless you're putting a ghost back into the Ghost Zone of course," Jazz said to her fifteen year old brother. "There are enough weapons down here to even take you down if you aren't careful."

"I know, but I wanted to show you something," Danny replied with a grin, pulling her by the wrist towards the portal.

"Do we have to do it now? It's late and I have a test tomorrow."

"I wanted to make sure Mom and Dad wouldn't miss us while we're down here."

"So you chose tonight," she finished for him, smiling slightly. Both parents were gone for a Ghost Hunter convention, which Danny and Jazz were conveniently going to miss due to school.

"Yep," Danny said. He stopped in front of the closed portal and turned to face her. "Do you remember when we were little and Mom and Dad were building the Ops Center?"

"How could I forget? They almost crushed our neighbor's house when one of the cables snapped," Jazz answered, rolling her eyes as Danny chuckled before continuing.

"Before that. They were working on it and we decided to explore the basement. Actually, I think we were going to go fight ghosts, but whatever. Do you remember that?"

"Oh," Jazz did remember, a wave of old disappointment washing over her. "I was so curious about the Ghost Zone. Of course, then I got older and realized how idiotic it was; ghosts weren't real so the Ghost Zone couldn't exist." She grinned at her half-ghost brother, who laughed wryly.

"Yeah, I was kinda curious too. Guess I never got over it did I?" Two rings of white light passed over him and he balled one white-gloved hand into a fist as his eyes changed into a glowing, vibrant green and his hair a snowy white.

"You went a little too far I'd say," Jazz teased before continuing, "so why are we down here?" Danny smiled impishly and grabbed her hand.

"Well I had my chance to see the Ghost Zone…and fight some ghosts—a **lot** of ghosts. I thought maybe you would like to…?" he indicated the portal with his other hand. Jazz's mouth opened in surprise.

"Oh!"

"If you want to…" Danny added hastily, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah! I really would!" Jazz cried happily. "Now?"

"Now," he assured her, dragging her over to the Specter Speeder. "But I have to warn you, it's kinda scary sometimes."

"Like Halloween?" Jazz joked, stepping into the vehicle.

"Yeah," Danny grinned. "Don't forget to be quiet."

"Shhh…"

* * *

**Dizgirl:** Cuteness! Even on the point of being gagtastic, but I'm liking it all the same! The last little scene was entirely made up by me. My dream ended with us not being able to go in to the Ghost Zone. I was highly disappointed. But at least Danny and Jazz get a second chance right? Right. So, tell me if there are errors, or if you like it, or whatever!


	6. Pretty Heroic

**Dizgirl: **I've never sat down and written something in one sitting and then decided that I actually liked it! Though I did begin this a while back the rest just spewed from the depths of my mind in the past two hours. Man, that was awesome! Come and enjoy the next DP dream I had, this time a rather interesting version of "Identity Crisis" if I do say so myself. But, since I'm posting this right away, there may be errors. Point them out please! Oh, and enjoy and love!

* * *

**Pretty Heroic**

"They're gone for two more days and then this nightmare will be over," Danny said, his forehead wrinkled worriedly. "Not that I'm saying being with you guys right now is a nightmare 'cause it's not, but it's kinda hard, y'know?"

"Yes Danny, we know," Sam sighed. "You don't have to worry that we'll be offended by every little thing okay? We're tougher than that."

"Yeah," Tucker agreed, "you're just overly sensitive because of what happened." Sam nodded, turning to face the two Dannys, one in each of his two forms. The human one spoke up again, his blue eyes gazing earnestly into theirs.

"Thanks, but I don't want to make you guys feel bad. It's not your fault I got caught in the Fenton Ghost Catcher again. Now I'm split in two just like last time and you guys have to deal with it. I'm sorry," he mumbled. Sam and Tucker exchanged exasperated looks.

Danny had been like this all morning after failing to reunite with his ghost half. He had been fighting a ghost fresh from the Ghost Zone when he stumbled into the Fenton Ghost Catcher and split his human and ghost sides along with his personality again. Instead of the "Super Danny" and "Fun Danny" split like last time, this time they had "Sensitive Danny" and "Who Cares Danny" to look after until his parents came back from their Ghost Hunter Convention out of town (they conveniently took the Ghost Catcher with them). Sam and Tucker almost wondered if the old split was better.

"Look Danny, it's okay," Sam reassured him for what felt like the thousandth time. "Like we said before, we don't mind doing this ghost stuff with you. Besides, there's no school, we're at the beach, and no one else is here because it's the middle of winter." She gestured at the near empty beach from the pier the four stood on. There was one family of three below them to the right playing in the sand and two joggers cutting across the beach to the other side of town, but for the most part they had the beach to themselves.

"Yeah," Danny reluctantly assented, smiling at the dark blue water below and the gray overcast sky above them. "I just wish I could still help people right now even though I'm not Phantom." Before either of his friends could reply his ghost half snorted loudly, grabbing everyone's attention.

"Aw, will you stop complaining?" Phantom drawled, gazing indifferently at the scene around them. "Who died and made you the savior of the world?"

"I can't help it! People need us and our ghost powers. We can't just ignore a cry for help!" Human Danny argued, shivering slightly as a sharp gust of wind blew past them.

"Correction,** you **can't ignore a cry for help. **I** can," Phantom smirked. Sam snuggled deeper into her coat, glaring at the ghost boy.

"You can't just **not **do anything!" Sam angrily interrupted.

"Watch me," Phantom answered her cockily.

"Oh, of that you can be sure," Sam warned, though she didn't look very threatening as she shivered in her black coat. Phantom shrugged and turned to watch the mother of the family flick sand at her husband playfully.

"Whatever, tell me when we can do something **interesting**…" Phantom muttered.

"I'm sorry but we're a little busy trying to figure out how to put you two back together," Sam snapped. Human Danny had been watching the two argue, his expression slowly growing more anxious.

"Can we stop fighting? C'mon, it's not nice," he finally said. This earned him an eye roll from his ghost half but Sam and Phantom both fell silent.

Tucker shook his head. Between the two Danny's and Sam, they had had this argument at least ten times already. How would they manage another two days before his parents got home and (unknowingly) fixed this mess? Tucker briefly wished they had brought Jazz in on this. She would know what to do and could keep the two Danny's under control, but "Sensitive Danny" refused to make her worry. Now they stood on the pier, cold, irritable, and no closer to a solution for their dilemma than they had been hours ago.

"Looks like we've hit a dead end, so why don't we go to the Nasty Burger? I'm starving, **and** there's a sale on PDA software at the mall too," Tucker suggested, his stomach growling in agreement.

"Tucker, can you think of anything besides food, technology, and girls for once?" Sam asked annoyed.

"Why would I want to do that? Besides, I didn't say anything about girls…"

"Because we can't go into the Nasty Burger or the mall with **Danny Phantom**. Why do you think I suggested the beach?"

"Well, it was just an idea…."

"We could go back to my house if you're hungry, Tuck," Danny quickly offered. "I bet Jazz is gone by now and we have plenty of food."

"Alright," Tucker hid a grimace. He would rather go to Nasty Burger than eat some of the Fenton's leftovers but he couldn't tell Danny that, not while he was so thin-skinned at least. The three turned to leave, but Phantom was staring at the ocean.

"Are you coming?" Sam asked, though she sounded like she'd rather leave him there.

"Don't want to; **this **is more interesting," Phantom replied coolly.

"What the water?"

"No, the **ghost**."

"**What**?!" Danny, Sam, and Tucker raced back to the railing, leaning over to look down into the dark water. Sure enough they could see something floating just below the surface, glowing purple and green.

"We have to stop it before it hurts someone," Danny declared, pulling off one of his shoes. Sam grabbed his arm before he could take the second one off as well.

"No way, Danny. You can't go after that thing when you don't have your ghost powers!"

"Yeah, dude, that thing's **huge**!" Tucker added, pulling out his PDA to take a picture of the massive ghost.

"You'd be killed easily," Phantom told him casually, floating slightly to get a better view. "It has at least ten tentacles that I can count and its energy is high for an animal ghost. Course a fight between a human and a ghost that big might be interesting…."

"Interesting or not it's too dangerous!" Sam argued.

"But…" Danny protested, his blue eyes never leaving the ghost below them as it slowly drifted down the beach. It **was** dangerous and that's exactly why he had to go after it. If he didn't then someone would get hurt and it would all be his fault.

"Look, let's at least get some weapons from your basement before we go after it?" Sam offered desperately.

"All we have right now is a spare thermos and you of course," Tucker nodded at Phantom. The ghost boy shrugged nonchalantly.

"A fight could be interesting but I might get hurt. That isn't fun at all," Phantom replied.

"You don't have to fight it, **I** can do that!" Danny quickly interrupted.

"No, Danny!" Sam insisted.

"Uh guys…" Tucker called, grabbing Sam's shoulder. "We have a bigger problem!" He pointed at the edge of the beach where the ghost was. Just a few feet away from the glowing monster was a little red-headed girl, giggling as she splashed around in the water. Her parents, caught up in their sand fight, hadn't noticed their daughter make her way into the surf. Now, she was dangerously close to a watery death.

"Look, the ghost is moving," Phantom pointed out as one of the massive tentacles, easily as thick as Jack Fenton, curled up out of the water and reached for the girl.

"No! Get away!" Danny yelled, pulling off his other shoe and climbing onto the rail.

"Danny!" Sam called, but he leapt before she could stop him. Phantom was grinning.

"Now** this** will be fun," he said as both Tucker and Sam glared at him. Fighting the urge to slap him, Sam shed her coat and kicked off her boots.

"Tucker, call nine one one **now**!" She ordered her friend as she dived off the edge of the pier. Down below, Danny hit the water and gasped as the icy liquid surrounded him. He quickly slowed himself down and swam to the surface just in time to see Sam break the water beside him. She rose to the surface even faster than he did.

"Sam! What are you doing?!" Danny asked, dog-paddling to stay above the choppy water.

"What does it look like I'm d-doing? I'm m-making sure you don't die!" Sam answered him sharply, shivering.

"No! You'll get hurt and you m-might…I can't let anything happen to you!"

"Yeah and I'm-m not letting anything happen to you, so you c-can sit here arguing with me or we can g-go save that girl!" He looked torn between wanting to protect her and the wanting to protect the girl.

Finally, he stuttered, "fine, b-but as soon as we have the girl you leave!"

"Only if you do t-too!" Sam agreed. The two jerked as an ear-splitting roar echoed across the beach. The ghost had the girl in one of its purple-green tentacles high above the water, waving it slightly back and forth as she bawled at the top of her lungs. Both of her parents were screaming from below, unsure of whether they should brave the icy water or run for help.

Danny and Sam swam forward, ignoring how their skin prickled with cold numbness and that they were both shivering uncontrollably now. Danny's breath cut through his chests like icy knives, but his need to protect the girl was much stronger than his pain. Even without his ghost powers he would help this girl no matter what!

The ghost's large, glowing red eyes had caught sight of the two teenagers. In response it started to thrash four of its tentacles at them in irritation. Another thunderous roar erupted from the beast, stunning the crying girl into silence. The ghost had moved further out into the water in an attempt to lose Danny and Sam, but they both continued to swim purposely towards it.

"Let g-go of her!" Danny demanded, pointing at the little girl who had resumed her sobbing from high up in the air.

"Danny!" Sam warned as a tentacle came crashing down near them. Both were pulled under the water by the force of it. Spinning around, Danny momentarily lost his bearings but the glowing purple underside of the monster reoriented him. He broke the surface of the water only to take a breath and dive under again as another of the ghost's arms slapped the water to his right.

He swam under the surface towards the belly of the ghost, hoping to find a weak spot. Sam was nowhere to be seen and he hoped that she was still alive among the waves and flailing tentacles. If not, he would never forgive himself. With his lungs burning for air, Danny reached the underside of the beast, spun around and kicked as hard as he could right in the center where the arms met. A horrible screech that traveled through the air and water told him he had met his mark. His legs were numb and heavy but he paddled upwards, blowing out the stale air in his lungs. He surfaced and saw a dark head bobbing about fifteen feet away.

"Sam!" he called over the wails of the beast. She turned and he saw a little red-head beside her. Relief flooded through him as he realized both girls were okay. "Get out of here!" She shook her head and pointed at him.

"Not without you!"

"I'm c-coming!" He indicated so by paddling towards her. Sam nodded and started for shore with the little girl hanging onto her back. Danny followed behind her, keeping an eye out for the ghost's flying tentacles. The creature was still howling and had partially sunk back into the water, moving back towards where it came from by the pier. Apparently he had hit it just right. Grinning briefly, Danny continued to swim forward. He had saved the little girl and Sam was safe too! Maybe he could help someone else as well later today.

His hope was snatched from him as something tugged on his foot. He pulled away from whatever it was, but it suddenly gripped him tightly, pulling him under the water. He yelped and received a mouthful of water in response. As he sunk below the surface he saw the green glow of the sea monster ghost. It may have been leaving but now it was taking him with it! Panic coursed through Danny and he struggled to break free from its grip. He couldn't die now! Not after he had saved that girl and defeated the ghost! It was supposed to **leave**! The grip slackened slightly and Danny managed to force his way to the surface again. Gasping for air he searched frantically for a way out. His eye caught a flash of white from up on the pier. His ghost half! Phantom would help him! He **had** to!

"Help! Please! You gotta help me!" Danny called out to his other half. He struggled to float above the water as the ghost continued to tug at him. The cold water was making it harder and harder to move as the numbness seeped up him body. "Please."

His eyes met Phantom's, and he shuddered at the apathy that filled them. Phantom was his other half, but he didn't care at all. Instead the ghost boy was lounging on the railing, causally glancing around at the scene. He wouldn't come and save his other half. Danny would die. As he realized this dread and fear clutched at his heart and he stopped fighting the ghost.

It pulled him more forcibly under the water and he instinctively sucked in half a breath before his surroundings dimmed. The water was even darker when he was within it and Danny could hardly see anything in the murkiness. He slowly sank towards the bottom or maybe it was to the side; he couldn't tell when all he could see was a swirl of black and blue around him.

He couldn't die like this. Maybe his ghost half didn't care but **he** should. He cared about everyone else and needed to take care of himself if he was going to help them. Danny started to struggle again as this thought took hold of his mind. He needed to **live**, but the ghost's grasp was too tight. He kicked the tentacle with his other leg and thrashed about.

But he couldn't do this for long. His legs were numb and heavy, his arms burned from swimming, and his lungs were about to burst from lack of oxygen. He didn't know if he could even push himself to the surface if he was free. Darkness was oozing in from all sides of his vision. He wouldn't make it...maybe, at least, Sam and the little girl had. He willed so with all of his remaining energy, hoped that they would be okay and that his death wouldn't be in vain. Shadows surrounded him as he exhaled.

----------------------

"Danny!" Tucker yelled as he saw his friend's head disappear from above the water. "Where did he go?!" Phantom floated higher and squinted at the darkened waves.

"He's just below the surface, the ghost got him," he answered calmly. Tucker was clutching the rail with one hand while the other held his cell phone. He had called emergency services just as Sam had asked and help was on the way, but it wouldn't make it in time to save Danny if what Phantom said was true.

"You have to save him!" Tucker commanded him. Phantom smirked, crossing his arms.

"Why? He can take care of himself."

"You think **that **is taking care of himself!" Tucker roared, pointing at where his best friend had disappeared. "He can't fight that thing without **your** help!"

"Really? Then why is he above water, huh?" Tucker spun around and watched as Danny gasped for air below them. Looking up, he called out to his ghost half.

"Help! Please! You gotta help me!" Phantom gazed at his human half uninterestedly.

"I don't have to do anything," he muttered. "Take care of it yourself." But his expression stiffened as Danny was pulled under again with his blue eyes dim with despair.

"Please!" Tucker pleaded, grabbing Phantom by the arm. "If you don't who will?"

"I don't care," Phantom responded quietly, pulling away from the techno-geek.

"Yeah? Well, what will happen when he dies, huh? Do you think you'll be just fine without him? **I don't think so**!" Tucker snarled. "You're his other half. You'll probably disappear when he dies! If I could help him I would, but I know I can't swim that well. **You** can fly!"

He grabbed his backpack from the ground and raced for the stairs that led to the sandy beach below. Phantom frowned as he floated there. Despite his apathetic appearance, what Tucker said strangely bothered him. If he was combined with his human half he would be terrified now for his safety. Though his lack of emotion was liberating in some ways the absence of it suddenly worried him. Wasn't he supposed to care?

He **was**. His personality was split. He was only half a person and now his other half was going to die! Sudden fear, fresh and painful, sliced through him and Phantom leapt into the air. It was time to be a hero...even if he did want to be one.

------------------------

A flash of green light broke through the haze that was pressing in on Danny as he slowly drifted into unconsciousness. Before he could register what it was or the ripping shriek that followed, he felt something grab him from behind. The weight of the tentacle left his leg and he floated upwards…or perhaps he was still sinking. He couldn't tell and he really didn't care. Danny sucked in a breath of water and his mind descended into a cold darkness.

--------------------------

Phantom sprang from the icy water and into the air, gripping his human half tightly as he headed back for the pier. The ghost was wailing and screeching from behind him as its wounds stung and burned. He had not treated it nicely.

Landing clumsily on the wooden planks of the pier, Phantom gently laid Danny down. He checked for a pulse but couldn't feel one. He blamed it on his thick gloves. Danny also wasn't breathing he noticed anxiously. Panicking, Phantom rolled him onto his side and pounded on his back.

"Come on! **Breathe**!" The ghost boy cried, watching Danny for any sign of life. To his relief it only took a few moments for Danny to choke and cough up water, which spilled from his mouth onto the already soaked boards. The sound of air rasping against his throat was music to Phantom's ears.

"Good…" he mumbled, collapsing onto his elbows next to his human half. "Good." He turned his head and his moping wet hair clung to his forehead, but he ignored it as he watched Danny breathe in and out.

"You…are really stupid," he grumbled. Phantom finally sat up after the effects of adrenaline slowly faded away and lifted Danny's limp form back into his arms. Annoyed by his hair and jumpsuit that were plastered against his skin, he went intangible. He spread his intangibility to Danny for good measure. Now dry, Phantom took off into the air, heading for Fenton Works.

"Really stupid," he repeated under his breath. "But pretty heroic."


	7. What We Can Do

**Dizgirl: **Hey y'all! I'm back yet again with another DP dream for ya! I want you to know that you guys pretty much freakin' rock with all of the happiness you've given me! THANKS PEOPLE! But back to the fic…this lovely thing is dedicated to **Magpie8spook **who I am showering with b-day love! Yay Magpie! Enjoy and love!

PS: Um…dunno if this still applies but there are mild season three spoilers in here. Just referencing Vlad's newest position and stuff like that…

* * *

**What We Can Do**

He hadn't meant to tell Vlad what he was going to do, especially not now while the two of them stood in an unfinished store in the new mall with the big event barely a half hour away. But Vlad had cornered him to gloat about the newest ghost security system he had placed at Casper High and Danny just couldn't resist using such a perfect comeback. He wasn't disappointed. Vlad's expression was absolutely priceless. Danny grinned as the color drained from Vlad's face and he froze in his attempts to tease Danny to gape at him. If Danny had known that Vlad would react this way, he might've been tempted to do this weeks ago.

"What's the matter, Vlad? Your cat got your tongue?" Danny taunted, his blue eyes dancing as Vlad remained silent. "You're really that surprised? Does this mean you won't try and stop me?" This seemed to pull a response out of Vlad and he regained his usual composure with a shrug of his shoulders.

"You won't do it," Vlad said shrewdly, eyeing the teen before him. "Not after my anti-ghost campaign and your recent encounter with Amorpho. I hear your parents have revitalized their efforts to destroy Danny Phantom because of it." There was a hint of a sneer back in Vlad's voice, but Danny was unfazed.

"Maybe, maybe not, but I'm willing to find out. Are you?" Danny crossed his arms, still grinning. "Or are you too worried about what my **mom** will think once she knows?" He took a step towards the door that led out back into the main part of the mall, hoping that both Sam and Tucker were able to finish their preparations in time. He paused.

"I don't really care either way, but I just thought I'd let you know that I'm telling everyone soon," he glanced down at his watch that Tucker had given him earlier that day. "In about half an hour to be exact."

"Stop Daniel," Vlad called as Danny turned to walk away. He grabbed Danny's shoulder and spun him around to face him. "Be rational about this!"

"Be rational? I **am** being rational!" Danny slapped Vlad's hand away. "My secret has been causing problems for me from the beginning. If I tell everyone my secret then I can say **goodbye** to my problems!" Vlad shook his head, scowling.

"And you think all of your problems will just disappear if you **expose** yourself? You will just create **more **complications!"

"For me or for you?" Danny asked with a smirk. "Don't worry, **Plasmius**, I won't tell them your secret…**yet**."

"What makes you think I'll let you go through with this," Vlad said, stepping around Danny to block off his escape into the noisy crowds just a few feet away from them.

"Who's going to stop me? **You**? What do you have to threaten me with except my secret?"

"How about your precious town's safety or the lives of your friends and your obnoxious father?" Vlad spat, towering over the young teen threateningly. Danny's smile finally disappeared and he glared at the older halfa seriously.

"They are under **my** protection, **'Mayor'** Masters," Danny warned, adding his title mockingly at the end. "And they'll know it in a little while too. You may be more experienced than me but **I** have a lot more people on my side now." He ducked around Vlad so that he was framed in the doorway. "And you? You just have yourself and your lonely-guy cat!"

"I have more at my disposal than you can ever **dream** of!" Vlad growled.

"Money isn't everything, Vlad. It can't buy me, it can't buy my mom, and it **definitely** can't buy my secret!" Danny called as he stepped into the crowds bustling around the wide walkways, enjoying the sour look on Vlad's face as he left him alone.

He quickly made his way through the chattering teenagers and harassed parents dragging overly excited kids, ending up at the metal railing that overlooked the lower floors of the mall. Amity Park's first mall was only two stories high but this one—freshly built courtesy of their new mayor—had a center section that was four stories tall. This would definitely work…and the irony would be sweet.

Danny's phone vibrated in his pocket and he flipped it open to see a picture of Sam on the screen. "Hey Sam. Is everything set?"

"_Pretty much. Your parents are on their way with Jazz--she gave them some bogus story about a sale on ghost stuff. Tucker has his video camera set up at the Nasty Burger, which by the way he wants me to tell you can't even begin to compare with the original Nasty Burger by our school."_

"Okay, good," Danny muttered, watching the crowds around him for a glimpse of the older halfa. He spotted his two friends across the gap on the edge of the food court. Sam leaned against the metal railing and said something to Tucker who was holding his small digital camera in hand. Smiling he asked, "what about your Specter Deflectors? Do you guys have them on?"

"_Yep, but I don't really know why...?" _

"Just to be safe, okay?"

"_Yeah, I know. The new features __**are**__ pretty cool…."_ There was a pause before Sam continued,_ "Are you sure you're ready for this? Letting everyone know at the same time could be dangerous. We would know." _

"I'm ready," Danny replied, slowly moving down the railing towards one of the bridges that connected the two sides of stores together. "With Freakshow, I still wasn't ready to let everyone know—especially my parents—but now I just want to be done with secrets. It's too dangerous to keep playing double identities when my parents are actually becoming a threat. Plus, I already know that they'll accept me. And even if they don't--"

"_--They __**will**_" Sam cut him short.

"Yeah…**but** even if they don't, it will still be easier to protect everyone from ghosts **and** Plasmius when they know my secret." Sam was quiet for a few moments and he could see her say something to Tucker. Then, she returned her ear to the phone.

"_Well if you're sure, then let's do this!"_ Danny could hear Tucker yell in agreement and saw him stick a fist into the air while holding the camera in the other.

"See you guys later!"

"_Good luck Danny."_

"Thanks." Snapping the phone shut, Danny paused at the end of the main bridge that connected his side with the food court. He moved over to allow others to pass him and exhaled slowly. This was the moment. Could he do it? Could he really expose himself in front of everyone else?

A hand reached out from behind him and gripped his shoulder tightly. Starting, Danny twisted around, coming face to face with Vlad. The man's blue eyes glinted strangely in the harsh fluorescent light. Danny swallowed. He knew the instant he told him that Vlad would try and stop him, but he had still hoped…

"I won't let you do this," Vlad said, his tone revealing how angry he was despite his calm expression.

"It's too late for that," Danny replied, tugging on the man's vice-like grip with both hands. When Vlad refused to let him go--not that he was surprised--he turned the arm intangible and stepped back up against the railing. "I've got to do this."

"And what if they reject you?" Vlad tilted his head to the left where people slowly moved onto the bridge. Danny shrugged casually and kept his face as neutral as possible. A sneer curled the corner of Vlad's mouth. "Ah, ignoring that one little detail, are we?"

"Not ignoring," Danny disagreed. "Just not caring."

"Oh, but you do care. I know very well just how much you care what other's think."

"Yeah, well maybe I changed," Danny snapped, whirling around and diving into the crowd. He let the flow of people push him along and managed to get halfway across the bridge when Vlad's grip returned and steered him towards the edge.

"People don't change overnight, Daniel," Vlad growled under his breath.

"Well when reality tries switching on you and your archenemy becomes mayor I think you can't help but change," Danny looked Vlad straight in the eye, his own blue eyes' melting into a fluorescent green.

"I'm done with secrets. I'm done playing the friendly ghost. My enemies are becoming bigger and stronger by the day. People need to know who I am so they can understand who we're up against," he shuffled backwards until the metal handrail pressed up against his back. "You either join me or leave because if you try and stop me I'll just make a scene and expose **both** of us." Vlad's face turned pink with anger and his lips thinned as he pressed them together tightly.

"I can twist whatever you do here today against you," Vlad threatened. Danny paused as his watch beeped three times. Smiling, he nodded.

"I bet you can, but don't think you'll win by slandering my name. I've been public enemy number one for months now; you can't get much lower than that!" Danny gathered his ghost energy and turned intangible. With another step back, he phased through the handrail and gripped the cool metal with his fingers. Regaining solidity, he leaned back slowly and watched the surprise come over Vlad's face with pleasure.

The air wafted around him and he could feel the emptiness below, four floors of it. But his anxiety was already disappearing as the hairs on the back of his neck stood up. Gasps rang out among the crowds as they caught sight of Danny hanging from the outside of the bridge, but he let the noise fade into the background.

This was the moment.

For once he would actually turn the tables on Vlad and force him to be the reactor instead of the instigator. He watched Vlad's expression change from astonishment to anger to fear. Somehow this cemented Danny's desire to do this. That and a little of Phantom's cockiness brought on by the rush of ecto-energy.

"Vlad," Danny grinned at the older halfa, "it's time to show them what we can do!" He let go of the rail, his weight shifting until it pulled him down towards the tiled floor below. Screams and yells echoed across the vaulted ceiling, but Danny ignored them as the air rushed past him.

The anxiety he had felt seemed to fall away and all he could feel was the elation that burst from his chest every time he flew. He could name only a few experiences better than this. The third floor rushed past him in a whirl of color and sound. He was falling head first and he twisted his head back to see the ground jump up to greet him. Just as the second floor disappeared from the corner of his sight, he reached inside for the familiar energy resting in his chest.

Light sparkled to life around his waist and swept over his body, tingling and cool. His senses sharpened and he could hear the shouts of alarm from the shoppers on the ground floor louder than before. The smells from pretzel stands, candy stores, and perfume shops swirled around in the air. He slowed his descent, but was still falling at a deadly speed. That is, deadly if you weren't half-ghost.

At the last moment, just as he could start to count the cracks in the tiles below, he jerked his body upwards and brushed the floor with his fingertips. Sweeping along the ground, he dodged a few terrified bystanders and phased through the nearest set of doors leading to the outside. Warm air enveloped him as he flew up into the air. Grinning from ear to ear, he did a flip and then spun around a few times.

Let them make of that what they would. He didn't know what Amity Park would think but his friends and sister were on his side. And if his parents made it in time (and knowing his dad's driving record they had) then maybe they'd be on his side too. For now, he would just fly a little longer, free from his secret at last.


	8. Except For Her

**Dizgirl:** So I've got this quote on my profile by Wallace Stegner that says, "If you just read literature and never have the experience of trying to make it, it's a monument; but a writer knows that when it was being made, every word was debatable."

I don't know if I'd consider this a monument exactly but I completely understand the "every word was debatable" part now. I've been writing this one for months tyring to get it to sound right, but every sentence was like pulling teeth. Big razor sharp permanent teeth that refuse to come out cleanly. (Sigh) But, it's DONE! And it's mostly like got some mistakes in it but I'm tired of working on it!

SO, have fun with it. It's really weird, but that's how the dream went. (shrugs) Oh, and it's definitely AU. Right...well enjoy and love!

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**Except For Her**

It was my job. A very simple job, but a job nonetheless. I did it very well. That's what all of 'them' said. I did it well…because of what I was. That was probably the only reason they kept me around. Because I **was** what I was and I was the only one of my kind. The only one to walk that careful balance between life and death. The only one to be both real and fantasy, warm and cold, solid and insubstantial, allowed and not allowed.

Half-human. Half-ghost. Neither and both.

They didn't fully understand it. I didn't for that matter. How I had become such a strange and unnatural creature was a mystery. I didn't remember anything before this fragile existence of being both dead and alive. Except for pain. I remembered plenty of pain.

But that was behind me now. Now I had a job. Now I had a purpose. Now I had people who needed me to do that job and to do it well. Though it was tedious and sometimes downright frustrating, I did my job because that was the only way they would want me. No one liked me; I was tainted, neither human nor ghost. But 'they' needed me. These people needed me and so I served my purpose and fulfilled my job.

'They' were a small group of humans that never stayed in one place for too long. Even now, after months of following them and helping them, I still didn't know what they did. I only knew that they moved from place to place and did things in secret. Secret things in dark rooms with whispered voices. I was never invited to these gatherings—not only because of what I was but also because that was when my job was the most important.

I was their look-out, their scout, their watch tower. Wherever they hid, in run-down apartments, underground sewers, condemned houses, I was always on guard. Most of the time my job meant nothing more than floating around and watching people walk by on a nearby street or rats scavenge empty subterranean tunnels. But sometimes it meant keeping curious and suspicious eyes away from our hideout.

Even though an unexpected visit—whether it was a highly alert cop or a gang of drunken teenagers—was bad news for those who I protected, I couldn't help but find the break from my monotonous existence exciting. My job **changed** when unwanted company appeared.

I would float invisible, watching the visitors to see what they would do. If they reached a point dangerously close to our hideout, I would jump into action. The temperature would drop as I slowly spread invisible waves of spectral energy like a thick fog over the area. Goosebumps would rise across their arms and the hairs on the backs of their necks would stand up. If I really stretched myself, they would begin to shiver and their breath would fog in the air. But I never got cold.

Next I would begin to moan, low mourning moans that reverberated deep in my chest. I'd wail and groan, softly at first but quickly building up until I was practically shrieking at the intruders. The supernatural sounds that I made were enough to send most people packing—even **I** could scare myself with the bizarre howls that would erupt from my throat if I really tried. Not many could stand up to such harassment.

But for the few brave souls that managed to throw off my verbal attacks, I had to create new ways to scare them. It wasn't very often that a cold draft and a few whimpers and cries wouldn't drive them away, but every so often there was someone too prideful or ignorant to heed my warnings. I quickly learned how to frighten even those stubborn visitors.

Sometimes I would scrape my nails along the walls or kick a stray rock or can so that it rolled across the room. I never showed myself and the absence of anything "real" would frighten most of them away. Other times—for the **really** stubborn intruders—I would whisper to them, floating close to where they stood and brushing my icy fingers across their arms and necks. I didn't particularly like doing it, but it always worked. No one stayed after I touched them. No one could handle that. Not even 'they' would touch me in either of my forms.

No one…except for her.

The first time I saw her was on a late afternoon as I guarded a large, abandoned warehouse on the edge of a small city. 'They' were busy plotting in a second building that was connected to the warehouse while I stood watch among the rotting crates and rusting machines. It was one of the better of places we had been because there was plenty of room for me to fly around and practice my powers. If I was careful I could even turn visible without worrying about someone seeing me.

But then she walked in with another boy, forcing me to disappear again. I was mad. They were ruining my fun. And worse, the two of them seemed to be having fun themselves. She was smiling as the boy chatted energetically about something—I couldn't make out what. He waved his arms dramatically, fully engrossed in his story telling. Yet, even though he was the more animated of the two, I hardly noticed him compared to her.

She wore all black, though parts were highlighted with purple and green. The black matched her short hair and the purple her eyes. Her eyes…they were the most peculiar shade of amethyst. I had never seen eyes like that before. And not only their color, but the way they lit up with her smile and yet still seemed to contain that glow even when she scowled. That was completely new to me. Not one of 'them' had eyes like that.

I floated invisibly above them as the conversation slowly trailed off and the two finally became aware of their surroundings. The girl's eyes continued to glow, but with curiosity this time. The boy pushed up his glasses and swallowed nervously. I let myself drift down so that I was close enough to hear what he said.

"Are you sure we should be here? Coming to a place like this alone is really asking for it."

"Wimp," the girl jibed, peering around the shadowy building. "What are you afraid of? A ghost?" I couldn't help but flinch at the word, but her tone confused me. It sounded like it was supposed to be mocking, but instead she just sounded excited.

"That'd make your day, wouldn't it?" the boy muttered back, cautiously following her as she wandered around. It took me a few minutes to realize that I was supposed to be scaring these two away from the warehouse. It was my job. I couldn't slack off now, even if I was curious myself.

I pulled out the spectral energy that resided within me and let it waft across the room. Slowly, the chill draft drifted over the two and they shivered. The boy stopped and hugged his arms to his chest. The girl bit her lip and paused next to her friend, her expression hesitant but not yet afraid.

"You feel that?" she whispered. "It's the middle of summer and it's **cold**."

"Guess the stories are true," the boy agreed quickly. "Can we go now?"

"Do you think it's actually a ghost—a **real** one?" She ignored his question, a grin spreading over her face. Why was she excited? Shouldn't she be running the other way? No one liked ghosts. Yet, she continued to stand there. Who was this girl?

"If it is, it sure doesn't want us around. Come on, let's **go**," he said with a frown, his teal eyes darting around the "empty" warehouse. Yes, that was how most humans reacted to me. They would feel my energy and then they'd run. I sighed, waiting for the girl to agree and for both of them to leave, but instead she remained where she was.

"Maybe the air is just always cold around them and he's actually friendly," she replied, rubbing her goose bump covered arms. I stared at her. Sure, some people were stubborn enough to ignore the cold, but always with scornful scoffs about how ghosts couldn't even exist. She seemed to believe we were real, but she wasn't scared? Could a human actually…think a ghost was "good"?

"What? Like 'Casper the friendly ghost'?" the boy quipped, cynicism clear in his voice. His words stabbed painfully and the spark of hope creeping up on me disappeared. I struggled with the sudden bitterness that tried to overwhelm me. It didn't matter what he thought, I reminded myself forcibly. I had a job to do.

Sucking in a deep breath, I let out a soft moan that echoed nicely across the abandoned warehouse. The low sound seemed to shimmer in the air, and I could see how the hairs raised up on the backs of their necks. They exchanged uneasy looks and the boy turned towards the exit.

"Let's **go**," he whispered fiercely.

"Not **yet**," she responded with equal intensity.

"**I** am." He spun around and practically sprinted out of the building. I couldn't blame him; my wail was definitely eerie. The girl sighed dramatically, rolling her eyes.

"Wimp," she muttered. A smile tugged at my lips, but I quickly pressed them together when I realized what I was doing. No, I reminded myself. I could not afford to like intruders. I had to scare them away. It was my job! Even if she...**maybe** didn't fear ghosts.

The unnatural moan trailed off at this thought and silence filled the room. I hugged myself, though I wasn't cold. No hoping, I scolded myself. Just make her leave before she realizes what I am. Because, even if she **thought** ghosts were 'friendly', she wouldn't if she actually met one. That I knew.

"Sorry about my friend," the girl suddenly spoke up. I watched her intently as she slowly twirled around, her purple eyes scanning the warehouse carefully. Was she looking for me? The thought sent a terrified shiver down my spine.

"He's just a little too practical for the supernatural," she continued. "Me, on the other hand…" She trailed off and smiled knowingly. I was completely baffled by the look. So, she wasn't "too practical"? What was that supposed to mean?

I let myself drop to the floor, trying to force myself to decide which tactic to use next; should I move objects around invisibly or scratch my nails against the crate next to her? But…I wasn't sure I wanted her to leave. What if she didn't hate ghosts? What if she wasn't afraid? Or, what if… I shook my head viciously. No, she **couldn't**.

No, most likely she thought she wasn't afraid but then she **would** be. She would look up at me with those strange purple eyes with fear and disgust. Like 'them,' like that boy, like every intruder that dared cross my path. And that was what scared me the most. Because I could handle rejection, but not when it started with hope.

Mentally pushing myself to refocus on my job, I weighed my options in my mind. After another moment of contemplation I sighed. I knew the best way to make her leave. I hated it, but I knew it would work. 'They' would be happy at least.

I turned my attention back on the girl, and had to stifle a gasp. She was much closer than she had been originally. She now stood only a few feet from where I was, her eyes closed in concentration. I watched her take another step in my direction before I realized what she was doing. She was feeling me out! It was possible since I was the coldest thing in the building, but no one had done that before.

"Are you still there?" she inquired, her eyes opening to survey the area around her. "I won't hurt you…" I bit my lip. Of course she couldn't hurt **me**, but I was about to give her the scare of her life! Guilt sunk heavily onto my shoulders, but I couldn't back down now. It was my job.

Before I could lose my nerve I took a few steps forward, my boots not even making an indentation in the thick dirt on the cement floor. I reached out my hand tentatively just a foot away from her shoulder. She seemed to freeze as my hand hovered there.

I held my breath, though I didn't even need it, and brushed my gloved fingers across her bare arm. A long shiver ran down her spine and her amethyst eyes popped open. I grimaced at the emotions swirling within them, but I knew that I needed to do one more thing to make sure she left. Then I could go hide…away from my job and from her.

In the lowest and scariest voice I could make I hissed, "Leave!" I abruptly turned around and pulled my feet off the ground so that I floated in the stale warehouse air. But before I could fly up into the rafters or some other dark corner of the building, I was stopped as something very warm and solid latched onto my wrist. I whirled around, so shocked by the strange feeling that I lost control over my powers and turned visible.

Looking down I saw a hand holding my arm tightly and my gaze slowly rose until it rested on the girl's face. The girl had grabbed me! Instead of running and screaming or even just standing there in surprise and horror, she had **grabbed** me! I gaped at her as her eyes studied my white hair, black jumpsuit, and green eyes.

"Wait," she breathed. "Don't go." Go? I couldn't even move. I was frozen by her touch. No one touched me. No one allowed themselves to even get **near** me, let alone reach out and grab me! No one did.

Except for her.


	9. It's Good to Be Back

**Dizgirl: **(cackles quietly) Oh this chapter was fun to write! I really had a lot of fun playing around with Vlad and Tucker's characters. (grins) Tell me how I did alright? Hmm...what else? Oh, this takes place post Phantom Planet. I don't know what happened but I went through this post-PP phase when I had the next few dreams that I'm going to use for this. Chapters nine, ten, and eleven are all post-PP (just so y'know). Other than that...well see my profile for my disclaimer and enjoy and love!

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**It's Good to Be Back**

The first thought that Tucker had as he slowly returned to consciousness was that Danny owed him big time. He hadn't really thought about what he was doing when he had jumped in front of his best friend; it had all happened so quickly and he hadn't had time to think, just act. If given the chance he would still do it but, dude, Danny owed him **big time**.

A throbbing pain radiated from his chest, interrupting his internal griping. He moaned quietly and opened his eyes. It took him several seconds to focus on his surroundings and a few more before he was able to comprehend what he saw, but when he did he completely forgot about Danny and his pain.

Where was he?

The room around him was small and dimly lit with a dark metal door eight feet in front of him. To his left, he could make out a window or a mirror that stretched across the whole wall but did not reach the floor. He tried to turn his head to examine it further…but…he couldn't move.

Tucker tried again to twist his neck and then attempted to move his arms and legs. He could feel something restraining him, holding him up vertically against a hard surface. He hadn't noticed it before, but now it seemed really odd that he would be positioned like that. It was almost like he was tied to the back wall of the room. Tucker frowned.

Why was he strapped to a wall?

One second he had been with Danny and Sam about to go to lunch and the next he was tied up mad scientist style in a dark room that appeared to be in a basement? Tucker scrunched his forehead as he tried to grasp the situation. It was then that the pain in his abdomen came back full strength, reminding him of the event that had given him his injury. Right. Danny owing him big time and…

Vlad.

Vlad had come back. After almost a full year of exile out in space he had returned, attacking Danny as they were about to enter the Nasty Burger. The fight had been vicious, both halfas all too willing to let each other have it. One particularly violent blow had plowed Danny into the ground a few feet in front of Tucker. As he tried to stand up, Plasmius had pulled out a strange looking gun and fired at Danny. Without thinking, Tucker had jumped in between…

…And now he was here. But where was here? **Why** was he here? Shouldn't he be outside the Nasty Burger or at home or even (he shuddered) at a hospital? He pulled on the restraints that kept him securely against the wall, hissing as his injury burned painfully. What was going on and where was everyone?

The door in front of him slammed open, jarring Tucker from his thoughts. To his surprise and confusion three agents dressed in familiar white suits entered the room. Two of them held large black guns and quietly positioned themselves on either side of the door, which they closed and secured. The third, a man with a shaved head and sunglasses on despite how dim the room was, walked up to where Tucker hung against the wall.

"We finally have you in our custody," he stated, his tone even though there was a hint of triumph hidden behind it. Tucker stared at him uncomprehendingly. This was the Guys in White's place? Why did they want him? The only things that they wanted were ghosts and he wasn't…

Wait…was he a ghost? But how had this happened? He had been hit by Plasmius's gun and yes it hurt, but it hadn't killed him…right? It didn't feel like he had died. Then again, he really didn't know what dying felt like; Danny could only half explain the concept himself. But…dead? No, he couldn't be dead!

"What…" he breathed, his wide eyes locking onto the operative in front of him. "What do you mean…?" The man raised one eyebrow, but answered his question.

"You are in a secure location within our headquarters reserved for especially violent ghosts. You will remain here for experimentation and study." Tucker's stomach lurched. Experimentation…

But why was he here? Even if he was a ghost—and he still wasn't sure he believed that—what had he done to end up here? They said that he was a violent ghost but he hadn't hurt anyone! He didn't remember doing **anything** since being hit by the gun!

And even if he had been hit by Plasmius, died, and become a ghost without remembering it, Danny would never allow him to be taken by the Guys in White. No, he would've defended him, even if he was evil! He had done it before when Tucker had wished for his own ghost powers. He wouldn't let him be taken! So why was he here?

The man cleared his throat, his voice flattening out again as he began, "There are multiple protocols that we must meet according to the manual. First, we will explain the rules of this facility. You will remain here until…" Tucker tuned him out, his mind still trying desperately to make sense of his situation.

The only way that Danny would allow them to take him was if he couldn't stop them. And the only way that could happen was if they had captured him as well. Tucker's stomach flip flopped again. What if Danny was in a cell just like this somewhere else? Because whatever the Guys in White told the public, they were **not** on Phantom's side and they would take any chance to bring him in and experiment away.

That had to be it. There was no other explanation for why the Guys in White would have him. He was…a ghost and both he and Danny had been arrested by the government ghost hunters. If they didn't find a way out soon they would be…well, bad stuff would happen. Really bad stuff.

Tucker pushed back the images that came to mind. He had to find a way out of this. There had to be some rule or procedure he could use to his advantage. They were all about following protocol right? So… an idea struck him and the briefest smile flashed across his face. Yes!

"Hey!" he called out, interrupting the man's speech. "I'm the mayor of Amity Park; don't I have some sort of…political immunity or whatever for this kind of stuff?" The operative pursed his lips—probably because interrupting him was 'against procedure'—but his face remained as impassive as always.

"You are no longer the mayor of Amity Park and therefore do not have any political immunities," he replied calmly. "And as I stated earlier, ghosts do not have any legal rights as of yet in this country so you do not have those at your disposal either."

"Yeah, well we're working on that," Tucker shot back. He was personally a part of Sam's organization that was fighting for spectral rights. Unfortunately, it would take years for their work to come into effect. Years he did not want to spend in a government experimental facility.

"There's gotta be some mistake," he pleaded, panic starting to play at the edges of his mind. What could he do to stop this? There had to be a way. "I'm not a ghost and even if I was I'm not evil!"

"You are a spectral entity; we do not make mistakes."

"But…" Tucker's mind raced. He really couldn't grasp the concept that he was a ghost, but he pushed that aside. It didn't matter really as long as he found a way out of here. Then he could deal with his 'death'. Another idea struck him. It was a desperate idea because he was sure that Danny was in their custody as well but at least it would call them out on it.

"What about Danny Phantom?" he threw out, easily catching all three operatives' attentions. "He's my friend and he will vouch for me!" For the first time in all of the encounters he had had with the Guys in White, they laughed. It was brief and short, but all three agents chuckled out loud. Tucker stared at them, unnerved by the random show of emotion and what it could mean.

"You are not an ally or even on friendly terms with the ghost kid," the man in the middle said, all hint of merriment gone. "That we know for a fact."

"What? Of course I'm his friend! I'm Tucker Foley!" The operative's eyebrow quirked up again.

"Do not attempt to deceive us, Vlad Plasmius. We are very familiar with your record of deceit and treachery." Tucker gaped at him. Vlad? Why would he call him Vlad?

"What are you talking about?" he demanded. "You are **insane**! I'm Tucker! Mayor Tucker Foley of Amity Park!" The man shook his head, held up a remote-like device in one hand, and pushed a button. The wall that Tucker was attached to—or perhaps just a part of it—shifted, turning him slowly to his left. After a minute he had turned ninety degrees and could see the darkened window that reflected the room clearly. His breath caught in his chest.

He could see Plasmius strapped up against a dark metal panel that was jutting out from the wall right where he, Tucker, was. He was in Vlad Plasmius's body! The Guys in White were right…No, not completely! He looked like Vlad but he wasn't! Not on the inside! How had this…

Tucker gasped as he realized what had happened. It must have been the weapon that Vlad had used on him! It switched their minds! Somehow he had created a gun that could switch people's bodies! But that meant that Vlad was now currently out in Tucker's body, doing whatever he pleased. This was really, really bad.

"Please! You have to believe me. I am Tucker Foley, but I'm in Plasmius's body! That gun he used against me…it did this to us!" He looked at the man's reflection, unable to turn his head to look at him directly. "I'm Tucker! Not Vlad!"

The man shook his head again, and turned towards the door. "We'll return later when you are in a more cooperative mood."

"No! Come back!" Tucker pulled at the restraints that held him, ignoring the raw pain in his chest. "I'm not Vlad! He's out there! I'm Tucker!" One of the operatives at the door opened it and all three exited.

"Come on! I'm not Vlad! I'm Tucker!" The door shut with an echoing clang. He looked at himself again the mirror, shuddering at his glowing red eyes.

"**Please**! I'm Tucker!" he cried out again. He was alone, but he kept shouting, desperately hoping that someone could hear him. That someone would **believe** him.

"I'm Tucker! **Tucker**!"

* * *

"Tucker! Tucker! Are you okay?" Vlad opened his eyes slowly, squinting against the bright sunlight above him. Someone's arms were on his shoulders, shaking him roughly. Before he could focus on whom it was, his body painfully reminded him of the wound that had knocked him out in the first place.

He groaned and shut his eyes tightly as his whole abdomen throbbed like it had been struck by…well, like it had been struck by a highly focused beam of ectoplasmically based energy designed to pull out one's consciousness and hold it in limbo long enough for another to take its place. It looked like his invention had worked. He was finally going to exact his revenge now that he was in Daniel's body.

"Tucker? Come on, dude. Wake up!" Tucker…? Daniel's techno-loving friend who had filled in his former position as mayor of Amity Park? What had happened to him? Vlad forced his eyes open, ignoring the sting of light and the pain in his chest. Blinking several times, he centered his attention on the one who leaned over him. His heart—his **borrowed** heart—skipped a beat.

Daniel was the one shaking him, his glowing eyes wide with anxiety. **What**? How was Daniel looking at him when he, Vlad, was supposed to be in the boy's body? His aim had been perfect! The boy had been right there in front of him! How could he have missed?

Then, the words that Daniel had been practically yelling finally clicked. He raised one of his hands from his side and examined its chocolate color with silent horror. He wasn't in Daniel's body…he was in Tucker's, the obnoxious **human** techno-geek. How had he made such a mistake?

"Tucker! Come **on**, man! Say something!" Daniel continued his pleas. Vlad shoved away his shock, knowing that the best move right now was to play along and reevaluate his plan later. So…what would a teen say right now?

"I'm fine," Vlad announced, pushing Daniel back and sitting up slowly. He gritted his teeth against his throbbing middle. He'd have to reconfigure his invention to be a little less painful—and more **accurate**—next time. "I'm…cool."

"Are you sure?" It was strange to have Daniel looking at him like this, especially considering the last look he had received from the teenager. There was no hint of anger or suspicion in his eyes, just concern and panic. Maybe this could play to his advantage. After all, if you can't have the hero, the next best choice is his right hand man, the sidekick, right?

"Yeah, so…lighten up, uh…dude," Vlad muttered, hoping his limited knowledge of teenage lingo gathered from the times he had spied on the young halfa would help him hide his true identity. 'Dude' was safe he was pretty sure. Daniel grinned crookedly, standing up and holding out his hand.

"I'll 'lighten up' when you've been checked by a doctor," he replied. "Thanks for taking the hit though I kinda wish you had let me; I heal faster. Still, I owe you a huge meal at the Nasty Burger!" Vlad scrambled to create a comeback. What would Tucker say at a moment like this? Would he really be satisfied with a heavily processed meal from a hardly sanitary fast food restaurant? Then again, that's where he had found the teenage trio.

"Uh…I'll hold you to that," Vlad said, grabbing his hand and pulling himself up. He stood unsteadily, watching Daniel's expression. He didn't seem to notice his hesitation and Vlad sighed in relief. So that was the right thing to say. Daniel grabbed Vlad's arm and wrapped it around his shoulders.

"Here, Sam's calling an ambulance. It should show up soon." Vlad nodded numbly, his thoughts turning towards Daniel's earlier comment. So Tucker had jumped in front of Daniel at the last second and took the hit himself. That would explain it. Vlad had not expected that, and now he was stuck in this ridiculous human body, half crippled by one hit. He had wanted **Daniel's**! That was how it was supposed to happen. Instead he would have to change everything.

Vlad suppressed the urge to rub his forehead with his fingertips, something he often did when he had a headache but Tucker most likely did not. It was all a mess...Well most of it was. At least his own body—and Tucker residing inside it—wouldn't be an issue. The Guys and White had shown up at the fight as he had planned; he was sure they had taken 'Plasmius' into custody as soon as the weapon had knocked him out. He was also sure Tucker was trying to desperately convince them he wasn't Plasmius right now!

Heh, they'd never believe him.

Wails in the distance broke through Vlad's musings and he looked up. Samantha—or Sam if you ever asked her—was walking towards them, snapping her cell phone shut in the process. She smirked at the two boys.

"One good thing about being the mayor, people respond fast," she quipped, resting one hand on her hip. "How are you feeling, Tuck?"

"I'm all right," Vlad responded, then added for good measure, "it hurt a lot, though." Sam grimaced sympathetically.

"You know, that wasn't exactly your smartest move of the year," she told him. "Danny could've taken the blow and be half healed by now!"

"Hey! Are you saying I should've been hit?" Daniel protested. "What kind of girlfriend are you?"

"The best kind," Sam smiled cheekily. "Are you going to deny it?" Daniel glanced at Vlad with wide eyes before returning his gaze to her.

"I'd never try to do that!"

"Good, now let's help Tucker into the ambulance."

"Hey, I think I'll be fine," Vlad began. Yes, he was in pain but he really didn't want to face the numerous tests and questions he would be asked by the doctors. "It's just a scratch…"

"Don't think you can get out of this just because you hate hospitals," Sam warned him as Daniel pulled Vlad closer to where the ambulance was parked. Two paramedics were already jogging towards them and his mind raced to come up with an escape. So Tucker was afraid of hospitals?

"Really, I think I'm all right," he dug his heels into the ground. "Just check me here and I'll go home or something. I don't want to go to a hospital!"

"No way!" Daniel held him tightly and Vlad cursed Tucker's lack of supernatural strength; one of the many reasons he had tried to take Daniel's body. Instead he would have to rely on his acting skills.

"Please!" he pleaded, pushing against Daniel's chest in mock terror. "Anywhere but the hospital!"

"I guess if the paramedics say it's okay…" Sam offered, watching the two boys bemusedly.

"No," Daniel stubbornly repeated. "You were glowing and you hit the ground hard and..." He looked at his boots and bit his lip before adding, "I need to know you're all right."

"I'm **fine**," Vlad stated firmly, raising an eyebrow at the teen's behavior. Why was Daniel so concerned? Was this normal for the young halfa? It was hard to say since he had never been on the receiving end of Daniel's kindness, but something was definitely different about him. Vlad pushed those questions to the back of his mind; he needed to focus on the present.

Catching Daniel's gaze, he tried to appear like he was hurt but well enough that he didn't need an overdramatic visit to the emergency room. "Just not the hospital," he repeated, when he saw Daniel hesitate.

He clenched his teeth together, but sighed noisily. "Alright, but the paramedics have to give you the full okay."

"Yes—I mean, yeah," Vlad agreed, internally sighing in relief. He allowed Daniel to drag him over to the two emergency technicians, who immediately started testing him and asking questions. Vlad did his best to answer but kept his replies short. He hoped it would look like he was just being the (apparently) doctor-phobic Tucker, who would rather be at home than be treated for his injury, instead of a horribly unprepared Vlad Masters. It seemed to be working for the moment, but he knew he would need to study Tucker's history soon. Another small setback in his plan.

Fortunately it was not as difficult as he had expected to maintain the illusion and with Daniel and Sam's help he was able to convince the paramedics to treat him on the spot before letting him go home. They weren't happy with it, but it was hard to argue against the mayor, the world's savior, and a wealthy activist who were all used to fighting for their way. In hindsight, Vlad had to say that Daniel had chosen his friends well.

Daniel took him home amidst the applause of spectators who had gathered around the Nasty Burger. Vlad couldn't help but compare it to the screams he had heard just an hour ago when he had first shown up over Amity Park. The contrast was amazing and he relished being on the general public's good side once again. It was so much easier to manipulate people who trusted you; his plan would definitely work. Of course it would take a bit more planning, but he could do it. His first step would be to revisit the mayor's office and see what Tucker had been up to since his exile.

"Good afternoon, Mayor Foley," the receptionist called as he entered the office. "How are you feeling? That was quite the scare you gave us yesterday!"

"Good, thank you, um…" Vlad searched her desk for a name plaque. "Susan. How are you?"

"Wonderful thank you! By the way, you have a meeting with the Spectral Safety and Security Committee in an hour. Will Mr. Phantom be joining you?" Vlad paused, trying to recall if Daniel had mentioned the meeting or not the day before while he had fussed over him all night.

"Uh…"

"Yep!" came a familiar voice as Daniel phased through the wall to their left. "Wouldn't want to miss that one." The woman yelped, one hand automatically going to her heart.

"Oh, you scared me Mr. Phantom!"

"Heh, that never gets old," Daniel muttered to Vlad, grinning. Then he turned to her, his smile changing into a look of indignation. "And I thought I told you to just call me Danny…or even Phantom. I'm not 'Mister'."

"Uh, yes…Phantom." Daniel's grin was back as he floated towards the Mayor's office. "Come on, Tuck. Let me help you into the office."

"I'm fine!" Vlad stated, brushing Daniel's hand away as his frustration from the day before quickly returned. "You would think I was made of glass the way you're talking about me." The ghost teen rolled his eyes but withdrew his outstretched hands.

"I'm just trying to be helpful, oh powerful mayor!"

"Well cut it out," he snapped. He almost liked it better when the teen hated him. Daniel's concern, was annoying, unnerving, and apparently never ending! Was he really this unused to his friend's getting hurt? Surely they had been in the line of fire before as they tagged along on his ghost patrols. He knew for a fact that he had put them in danger several times himself! What happened in his absence to make Daniel so paranoid?

"Alright, alright," Daniel followed Vlad into the mayor's office, his old office. A lot had changed since he had last been sitting in that chair. But now he would be able to sit in it again. A smile spread across his face and he turned away from Daniel to hide it. Perhaps being in the young mayor's body wasn't so bad after all. Yes, he had lost his ghost powers but now he had regained his **political** power.

"So…" the halfa began, plopping himself in a bean bag chair to the left of the desk. There had definitely not been any bean bags when Vlad had been mayor but now there were several scattered throughout the room; it must be one of Tucker's ideas. Vlad glanced around the office, noting the soda machine in one corner and mini fridge next to it, and rolled his eyes.

"So what?" he finally responded, gently settling himself down in Tucker's—**his**—chair behind the desk.

"So…Plasmius, huh?" Daniel looked up at him, his smile gone and replaced by a serious frown. "I mean, I knew he'd be back, but still…" He stared at Vlad for a few seconds and his gaze dropped to the floor.

"I hoped, y'know?"

Hoped what? That he would forget how Jack had left him stranded in space? How Daniel came in afterwards as Phantom and created a plan that saved the world and gave him worldwide fame and admiration? How Maddie surely considered him a monster now? How his whole life had been destroyed because that stupid piece of glowing rock he had been studying out in space had to be pushed towards Earth because Daniel destroyed his space station?

No. He would never forget. But Daniel couldn't know that yet. He suppressed a sigh, and forced a reassuring smile on his face.

"Yeah, I know, but now you don't have to worry. The Guys in White have him," he lied. Daniel scoffed and stood up.

"We'll see about that. I trust those guys about as much as I trust Skulker to give up hunting me and become an animal loving tree hugger." Vlad chuckled. That would be something to see. Daniel glanced towards the clock on the wall and sighed.

"I dunno…it's just after everything that has happened lately…" he trailed off and shrugged, his gaze distant. So something had happened, but what was it? Vlad silently bemoaned the fact that he couldn't come right out and ask. He'd have to find a subtler way later…

"Anyways," Danny continued, shaking his head as if to clear away his thoughts, "I think I'm going to meet up with Sam before the meeting; I just wanted to check in with you first. See ya then?" He turned to Vlad, who nodded.

"Yes, I'll be there." Daniel smiled and floated up into the air.

"'Take it easy, okay?"

"Sure," Vlad rolled his eyes but made an act of sitting back in the chair. Daniel laughed quietly and disappeared through the wall.

Vlad let his head fall back against the seat, studying the familiar room before him. Even with his mistake, things had turned out well. With a little improvisation his plan could still work. A smile slowly spread across his face. Yes, he could still bring the famous Danny Phantom down and now he could watch from the safety of the sidelines. Really, things had worked out perfectly.

Settling himself even deeper into the plush chair, he grinned. He had really missed sitting in this room late at night, scheming and planning ways to bring the Fenton's down and secure Maddie for his own. Of course his goal was different now, but the careful calculation and preparation was the same. It wasn't all that different from the last time he had been in this office.…

Yes.

"It's good to be back."


	10. You Don't Want to Be a Ghost

**Dizgirl: **IT'S DONE! (collapses onto the floor) My goodness this one gave me trouble! And it's not even the first one I tried to do! The first DT10 flopped on me and I couldn't finish it. So, you get this one instead. Please tell me whatchya think. Enjoy and love!

* * *

**You Don't Want to Be a Ghost**

Danny leaned against the railing guarding the edge of his home's rooftop and watched the street below. A breeze drifted across him, cool and refreshing, but he couldn't concentrate on the beautiful day around him. Instead he stared down at his neighbor's house, a torrent of emotions roiling within his mind.

This made number three. The third house to adorn that white post and then replace it with a bright red "SOLD" sign. The third house to be crowded with boxes and vans and a chatter of commotion. The third family to move on his street. Oh sure, they each had their reasons—a new job, a place closer to family, a change of scenery—but he knew the real reason. He knew why they left one by one.

It was because of him.

Danny buried his head in his arms, unwilling to stare at the empty house below. Soon a new family would move in but it didn't really matter. They'd probably move again soon enough. He could just imagine the grins on the real estate agencies around town as people all over were packing up and moving out. And all because of him.

Jazz of course would disagree with him on this point, she had only told him so a thousand times in the past few months. But even his ever optimistic sister couldn't ignore the fact that people were coming and leaving in waves as people came to gawk at the "Savior of the World" and then decide it was too dangerous to live near a half-human/half-ghost kid and the destruction that followed him.

Danny frowned before straightening up and turning around, his back now to the street. He sighed, leaned against the rail, and stared up at the towering Fentonworks Ops Center. He had hoped that exposing who he was after avoiding the Disasteroid would make life easier for him. It had felt right to finally show his parents and all those who worked with him to save the world the truth. He just hadn't completely thought through what it would mean. He wasn't just telling a few people who he had come to trust, but the whole _world_.

And the world wasn't so understanding.

Oh sure, there were nice people out there who were friendly to him or admired him (some a little too much for his taste) but it was amazing how quickly that friendship and admiration could change to suspicion and fear when the memory of the Disasteroid was pushed behind an outbreak of ghosts attacks and the Guys In White's public service announcements warning against trusting ghosts (they failed to distinguish between him and the one's attacking, but when had they ever been on his side?)

But that was hardly the worst of it. He could handle the constantly changing opinions and pestering questions of the public—they had done it before his big reveal and he had managed just fine. No, it wasn't the world's fickleness that drove him to the rooftop for hours at a time or kept him patrolling for ghosts late into the night. It was his parents.

Danny squeezed his eyes shut against the resentment and hurt that swelled within him. When he had shown that Phantom and Fenton were one and the same they had both accepted it with wide grins and big hugs. He had never felt such relief! His parents didn't care that he was half-ghost! The next few weeks were full of questions and discussions as they asked him about what it was like to be a halfa and why he had kept it from them. He was ecstatic to welcome them into the side of his life he had hid for so long and they seemed equally excited to finally understand.

Yet the excitement hadn't lasted. Now…things had changed.

A low beeping came from his wrist and Danny glanced down at the green light blinking on his watch. Speaking of his parents... With another sigh, Danny pushed off the railing and dropped through the roof. He landed in the upstairs hallway without a sound. Immediately the lights above his head flickered three times. He stared up at them, his eyes narrowing, but after a few seconds he turned away.

Danny trudged down the stairs, sending a brief glare as the living room's lamps also triple-blinked before resuming their usual glow. Not seeing or hearing his parents, he headed for the basement. He swiftly crossed the kitchen, not letting the lights the chance to fully complete the same ritual as the other two rooms before he was already on the staircase.

"Mom? Dad?" he called out.

"Down in the lab," his mother's voice answered him. He followed the sound and looked to the right when he entered the basement, seeing her sitting on a stool in front of a computer display. She typed a few keys and then stared intently at one of the screens.

Without glancing at him, she asked, "So the watch works?"

"Yeah," Danny walked to her side, adding under his breath, "so do the Fenton Flickers."

"Good…" his mother replied distractingly. "Once we've finished the test run, they'll be ready for mass production." Danny made a face his mother didn't see.

"Great," he said sarcastically. "Soon the lights will be blinking in _every_ place I go."

"Danny, we've talked about this," Maddie shook her head, writing something down on a notepad in her lap. "The Fenton Flickers are the best ghost detector system we could think of that wasn't too noisy and didn't attack ghosts. You should be grateful I convinced your dad not to sell the Fenton Emergency System to the general public."

"Yeah yeah," he muttered. He sighed again, digging his hands into his pockets. "So what did you want?" Maddie, her gaze firmly on her notepad, tapped one of the screens with her pen.

"The ghost scanner picked up two ghost energies downtown. I thought you'd like to…you know."

"Oh," Danny stared at her, annoyance and disappointment mixing in his mind. Was that all she wanted? For him to go take care of a ghost? Then again, he didn't do much else nowadays. It was summer, and when he wasn't hanging out with Sam and Tucker or brooding on the roof, he was hunting. Still, it would be nice to talk to his parents about something other than ghosts at one point…or talk at all. He waited for a few seconds, hoping she had something else to say, but Maddie remained silent, frowning quietly at the text scrolling down the screen to her right.

"Guess…I'll go do that," Danny hesitated a second more and then turned away. Rings of light flashed into existence at his waist and he pushed himself off the ground.

"Be safe," Maddie called, waving a hand in his general direction. Danny didn't bother to answer, knowing it was useless since she wasn't really paying attention. She never looked him straight in the eye anymore. Not for weeks. And his dad wasn't much better.

Another wave of frustrated gloom draped itself over his body and Danny sped through his house and into the afternoon air in hopes of leaving it behind at home. No such luck. He tried to ignore the heavy feeling, focusing instead on flying at the fastest speed he could manage. Abruptly he changed directions, rocketing upward into the blue expanse above. Then, as the air grew chilly around him, he twisted into a hairpin turn and dropped towards the ground. The weightless feeling in his stomach wasn't enough to dissipate his low spirits but it did bring a grim smile to his face.

Danny glided towards the ground, weaving his way in between tree tops and lamp posts with practiced ease. He heard someone call out his name and he shifted his gaze to the ground. A group of kids were waving at him from a street corner, large grins plastered on their faces.

"Danny Phantom!"

"Look here!"

"Hey! Gonna go fight a ghost?"

"You're awesome, Phantom!"

He slowed down and waved back politely. This only seemed to fuel their enthusiasm and they followed him along the sidewalk.

"Go get those ghosts!"

"Yeah, kick their butts!"

"Hey, can I have your autograph?!"

Danny rolled his eyes (how many times had he been asked _that_ in the past month? Surely it was in the hundreds) but the comment brought a smile to his face. He turned away and continued on, the kids' cheers following behind him. The heaviness in his heart eased slightly and he increased his speed, heading towards the park that lay between him and downtown Amity Park with new energy.

Soon he was flying over green grass and winding sidewalks, breathing in deeply of the fresh earthy scent wafting from the ground. It was the first time that day he was able to enjoy the balmy weather and he drank it in slowly. Yes, things were bad at home and a lot of people were afraid of him but it wasn't like _everything_ was wrong, he reminded himself. There were still a few things—a few _people_ who made what he did worth it. He forcibly pushed the gloom to the back of his mind. It wouldn't stay there forever, but Danny relished in the break from its stifling grasp that those fans had unintentionally spurred.

"Phantom! Phantom!" He glanced down for the second time and noticed a young boy waving at him from a grassy patch below. Danny smiled again, slowing down so he could give him a casual salute. The boy jumped up and down in excitement. He tugged on the shirt of the man next to him.

"Daddy, look! It's Danny Phantom! He's so cool! When I grow up I wanna be just like him!" A fuzzy warmth nestled within Danny's chest at the complimentary words. Sam, Tucker, and Jazz had tried their best to console him when things had taken a bad turn, but nothing they said had elevated his mood as much as that simple statement.

The man looked up, his expression much cooler than the boy next to him. He wrapped an arm around his son and pulled him closer. "No, Nathan. He's not cool. You don't want to be a ghost." Danny's chest constricted painfully, his rising emotions plummeting back down into hurt and frustration. He turned away and fled into the sky as the words echoed in his head.

"_You don't want to be a ghost."_

Why? _Why?! _Why did he have to say that? Why did he have to tell his son that? Why did he have to ruin the first spark of happiness Danny had felt in _weeks_? Why was it that as soon as he showed that Danny Phantom was more than just a ghost, so many people turned their backs on him? There were people like the boy or those kids who would cheer him on, but so many others seemed to hate him. Why was everyone so angry at him? So afraid of him? What had he done?

Tears burned the edges of his eyes but he bit down hard on his lip in an attempt to hold them in. It wasn't fair! It wasn't fair how they were treating him! Didn't they realize how much that hurt to see the way that they looked at him? Talked about him? Ignored him? Why couldn't they see?

Why? Because they wouldn't even look at him. They wouldn't meet his eyes. Not for _weeks_.

Grief washed over him and a sob rose in his throat. He stopped in the air, swallowing hard. He couldn't do this, not here and not now. He still had two ghosts to catch. Then—_then_ he could find a place to be alone. He inhaled slowly, struggling to keep it as even as possible, and then exhaled the same way. After repeating this a few times, the burn in his eyes disappeared and he was able to open his mouth without fear of crying out.

"Two ghosts, that's it," he promised himself. He took off once more in the direction of downtown, pushing against the dark feelings that lurked on the edges of his mind. Scanning the horizon, Danny waited for his ghost sense to tell him where the ghosts were. He was just flying over City Hall when the icy mist escaped his mouth. He paused, his body automatically tensing up for the fight ahead.

"Well if it isn't my favorite little freak." Danny whirled around, looking up at two ghosts floating above him.

"Spectra," he said, recognizing the shadow spirit instantly. Next to her was Desiree, a sly smile on her face. "What are you two doing here?"

"Why else would we be here, Danny?" Spectra asked. "We heard about your new predicament. You're just such a popular halfa now." His eyes narrowed. Of course Spectra would decide to drop by now, right when things were at their worst.

"Shut up and go back to the Ghost Zone—both of you," he ordered, though he hardly expected them to listen. Sure enough, Spectra only smiled sympathetically.

"There's your problem, Danny, always closing up and keeping all your anger locked inside! No wonder everyone's afraid of you." He bristled.

"They're not afraid of me!"

"Well, no one has said it yet," Desiree spoke up, "but you can see it in their eyes. Mentally, each of them is _wishing_ you would be gone." Danny fell silent, wanting to deny it, but how could he when he had just thought something similar minutes before? Spectra drew closer to Danny.

"You shouldn't let that get to you, Danny," she advised him, "even if it is true. Who cares if they all are afraid of you? As long as you're happy that they know who you really are, that's all that matters." Danny frowned, knowing perfectly well what she was trying to do. Unfortunately, understanding her method did not make it easier to fight it off. The air around him seemed to thicken as she closed the distance between them.

"Well?" she continued when he didn't answer. "You _are_ happy they know, aren't you?" Spectra tilted her shadowy head to the side, her face set in a perfect mask of caring and concern. It was a face that could draw you in if you didn't see the hard glint in her eyes or predatory curl to her lip. _Don't let her get to you_, he reminded himself.

"Yes," he lied, "it's better that they know." Spectra arched an eyebrow.

"Even your parents?" Danny unconsciously flinched. "How did they react when they found out their little boy was the infamous Danny Phantom they had been hunting for so long?"

"None of your business," Danny replied tersely.

"Wow, that bad, huh?" She flew up behind him and before he could react, rested her hands on his shoulders. "You poor thing, and just when you needed them most." He closed his eyes against the sudden onslaught of misery her touch brought to the surface.

"Stop it," he told her.

"Parents can be so oblivious to all the pain you're going through," Spectra continued as if she hadn't heard him. "It's even worse when you tell them everything and they just throw it back in your face like they don't even care." His mind was clouding, making it hard to concentrate. Images of his parents refusing to look at him jumped into his mind.

"St-stop it," he repeated. "Let go."

"But we care, Danny, and we can make it all better if you let us."

"No, you can't help me," he denied, shaking his head. His insides felt hollow and Spectra's grip tightened.

"Oh but we can," Spectra jerked him back so that he looked up at Desiree. The genie ghost smiled, drifting down to where they were.

"I can make your wish come true," she reminded him. "Say the word and I'll make it happen."

"Just think," Spectra whispered into his ear. "What if they didn't know your secret? What if things went back to the way they were before? Before they knew? Before everyone rejected you and called you a _freak_." The last part of her comment jabbed painfully.

"Oh yes, I hear what they call you when you're not around. A half-ghost freak who's unpredictable and dangerous. Someone you should avoid at all costs. They're terrified of you, Danny." He grimaced, fresh despair sinking into his mind as he thought of the father's comment in the park.

"_You don't want to be a ghost."_

"People are easily scared. One sign of danger and," Spectra snapped her finger, "all that loyalty gone like a blown-out candle. I think you know that better than anyone."

Desiree was in front of him now, her red eyes glowing brightly. "But you can wish that they'd forget. You can wish that things went back to a time when you were the mysterious Danny Phantom who protected the town."

"And your parents would be none the wiser," Spectra added. "You would just be their little _human_ son again."

"No more anger—"

"—No more fear."

"Just one wish." Danny's eyes glazed over as his emotions tumbled around in his head. He tried to grip at something—_anything_ that would help him see things clearly. What they were offering couldn't be right. He knew he couldn't trust what they said, but…

But he wanted it. He wanted it badly. He wanted things to go back to how they were before. Back when he was hunted by a few ghost hunters instead of hundreds of fans. Back when he was feared because people didn't understand who he was and not because they did. He wanted to have his secret back. He didn't want anyone to know the truth.

Most of all, he wanted his parents back. He wanted them to be with him, talk to him, _look _at him. The longing made his whole body _ache_.

He looked up at Spectra and Desiree's expectant faces, indecision battling within him. Did he make a wish that would give him what he wanted but most likely with terrible consequences? But what if he didn't? Could he survive another week the way he was with this gloom, this depression hanging over him like a thick fog?

"Well…?" Desiree pressed. Danny hesitated for a second longer and then closed his eyes as he made his decision.

"I wish…"


	11. Worth It

**Dizgirl: **So as a few of you know I put up a poll on deviantart and here asking you which of these that I had planned did you want me to write next. The resounding reply was this one (with "I'll Show You" as a close second), so that's what I wrote! I really liked this dream. It was unique…

Anyways, enjoy and love. Oh, and this takes place post-Phantom Planet.

* * *

**Worth It**

Warm sunlight streamed through the glass of my window and spilled across me as I lay in bed. I tilted my head towards the golden light and closed my eyes, exhaling softly. It was a day meant to be squandered on nothing but blue skies and bright sunshine, the kind I would waste with lazy flights over Amity Park and dream about when trapped at Casper High. A perfect early summer afternoon.

And yet I couldn't enjoy it.

I turned away, cool shadows falling over my face. Not even a day such as this could completely erase the feelings that hung in the corners of my room, drifting like cobwebs. The anxiety, the fear, the despair clung in wispy clumps at the edges of my vision. I could ignore them as much as I wanted but that didn't make them go away. Not even close.

Shaking my head, I shoved these thoughts into the background. No, I wouldn't do this today. I needed to be on my best behavior. Today, Sam and Tucker were coming to visit. I needed to be cheerful and optimistic. They'd see through it in a second but I knew they would be comforted by the fact that I was still trying. At least I was still trying.

Inhaling sharply, I pushed myself up into a sitting position and swung my legs out from under the covers. I paused, leaning heavily on my arms, and stared at my pale feet. They should be arriving any minute now which meant I needed to ditch my pajamas and find some real clothes….When was the last time I wore jeans?

I mused quietly on that thought as I heaved myself to my feet. Spots spattered across my vision and I swayed. After a few moments the dizziness passed and I walked to my dresser. The last time I wore jeans was probably the last time Sam was here. That was two months ago during spring break. She came down from college for the week. It had been wonderful to see her…until the last day when I ruined the whole trip.

Grimacing, I pulled open the drawers and shuffled clothing around to find a suitable outfit. I bet she was still mad at me. If there was one thing the Manson's were good at (aside from whipping up crowds of people into rioting mobs) it was holding a grudge. Today would probably be rough, but hopefully I could fix things so that the rest of the summer wasn't spent in a stony silence.

I changed my clothes and then turned to my mirror. My hair was messy, parts of it flattened and others sticking out at odd angles. Gotta love bed-head. I ran my fingers through it a few times and then gave up on the attempt when it only made it worse. Glancing over my image one more time, I shrugged and headed for the door.

Just as I turned the handle, the doorbell rang. A smile jumped on my face and I swung my door open. I heard the front door mimic the movement and my mother's muffled greeting. I started down the hallway toward the stairs, my feet padding softly across the carpet. Voices echoed upward and my stomach flip-flopped when Sam's joined the fray. I hope she wasn't **too** mad at me…

I stopped at the top of the stairs, the wall on the left side preventing me from seeing my family and friends gathering in the room below. It was at this point that my body seemed to have had enough. My legs grew shaky and I rested one hand on the wall. I was far too familiar with this sensation to be alarmed but I thought it best to sit down for a moment before continuing. I pressed my back to the wall, sunk to the ground, and stretched out my legs. Sighing, I closed my eyes and focused on the conversation drifting up from downstairs.

"How were finals?" Jazz asked. Why was it that she always went straight for the school stuff? I rolled my eyes and wondered if Sam was doing the same. I could just see her purple eyes sweeping upwards and the slight twist of her lips.

"Fine, they weren't that bad this year," Sam replied. "I'd ask the same but knowing you I bet they went very well."

"Well she did manage to graduate, so she probably passed them," Tucker joked.

"Yes, they went well and **yes,** I managed to graduate."

"So are you here for the whole summer, Sam?" my mom interjected, most likely cutting off another quip from Tucker.

"Yep, I'll start looking for a job later this week."

"You can always come work for _me_," Tucker said, his tone still teasing. "I could use a personal assistant."

"The day I become your personal assistant, '_Mayor'_ Tucker, is the day that the Box Ghost wins a fight," Sam countered. Now it was Tucker's turn to roll his eyes while the three women laughed and I chuckled quietly.

After a few moments of silence, Sam spoke up again, her voice dropping. "So…how's Danny?" I sighed. It was inevitable that she'd ask and I knew they had to talk about me when I wasn't around. Sometimes that annoyed me but for the most part I was grateful. I didn't want to hear them worrying about me.

"He was doing much better," my mom began. "Until yesterday." I could just picture in my head her exchanging a significant look with Jazz.

"What? What happened?" Sam's tone grew urgent. "Is he okay?"

"He's fine," my mom reassured her. "He just…"

"He caught me when I fell down the stairs two days ago," Jazz explained. "Full contact." The memory was still fresh in my head and as Jazz began to relate what happened I let it sweep over me.

_I was watching a movie in the family room, my eyes glued to the screen and my feet propped up on the coffee table. Jazz walked behind the television, completely absorbed in a book she was reading. She started up the stairs but with her nose in the book she didn't see the shirt my dad had tossed on the steps. _

_I looked up just as her foot slide off the edge of the stair. She started to fall backwards and my instincts kicked in. I moved faster than I had in months off the couch, across the room, and to the bottom of the stairs. I managed to catch her in time, but the consequences were serious. _

_As soon as her skin made contact with mine, my vision darkened and my limbs went numb. We landed hard on the carpet below and my arms fell uselessly to the side. My whole body felt like it had been sucked of energy and I closed my eyes wearily. _

_She rolled off of me and I could distantly hear her calling, "Danny! Danny? Can you hear me?!"_

_It took me several tries before I could open my eyes in answer. Her face was a blob of orange and peach and I shut my eyes again when things started to spin. She continued to repeat my name but when I didn't respond—I couldn't, my body was so __**heavy**__—she switched tactics and called for my parents. I could feel the thump of my father's footsteps. I looked up at him and my mom. More peach, more orange, and now blue. I could hear the alarm in their voices though the words were indistinct. _

"_S'okay," I mumbled, hoping to stop them from fully panicking. "Just…tired…" _

That was the last thing I remembered before waking up last night. I was out for almost twenty-four hours and I would need a lot more rest before I would recover completely. The fact that I couldn't even make it downstairs without a rest in between was proof. I shook my head. That was my life now. All I did was sleep, eat, and avoid touching the people around me. It wasn't much but I had to if I wanted to survive. And I had to survive until my parents figured out how to stop this from happening.

How to stop my newest power from killing me.

It was about halfway through my first year of college that I discovered I had a new ability. When I touched someone who was sick or injured in some way, I healed them. It was automatic; I didn't even need to focus on it at all. One second a person was coughing and complaining of a sore throat, the next they were as good as new, ready to go to class instead of collapsing in their dorm room. I remember I even managed to heal a guy's broken leg. You should've seen the look on his face when the pain suddenly disappeared. I bet his doctor's expression was even better.

There was a downside to the new power of course. I would feel a little tired, and something as big as a fracture would leave me dizzy for a few moments. But I just expected that I would grow stronger as I used it. Like my ghostly wail, eventually it would become just another powerful tool in my arsenal that I could use at will with only minor consequences.

Unfortunately that didn't happen. The first sign that something was wrong was when I realized I couldn't control it. It didn't matter whether I wanted to heal the person or not, I would. I mean, I always _wanted_ to help them but when I was dead tired after a day of classes and a shift of work I didn't have the energy to spare. But I couldn't stop it. One brush of a hand against me or a bump of our shoulders and they were feeling ten times better while I grew wearier.

And each time it got worse. At first I would just feel a bit tired like I didn't have enough sleep the night before, but then just the smallest of healings were making my head spin. I could see the look on Sam's face, the tightening around the corners of her eyes and the press of her lips. I was all too familiar with that look because she had worn it every time I came crawling back from a ghost fight in high school. Worry, concern…fear.

I told her it was okay. She said she'd believe me after my parents took a look when I came home for the summer. I didn't want to drag my parents into this—I still found it weird to talk to them about ghost stuff even though they had accepted my ghost half after the Disasteroid incident—but she insisted. Sam can be very persuasive when she wants to be…

My parents ran test after test, their foreheads scrunched in confusion. My mom and dad didn't know what was happening exactly. I kept trying to explain that my new powers always left me feeling out of it until I learned to control them. Their answer was the same as Sam's: but **can** you control it? It was insulting to say the least, but I was actually wondering the same thing. No matter what I did and how much I practiced, I still couldn't turn my healing power "off." The only thing my parents were certain of was this new ability was different from all of my other powers. Something about how it used my energy or something, I don't remember. I didn't care at the time.

Either way, I convinced them to let me go back for my sophomore year. It wasn't like I couldn't handle exhaustion I pointed out, thinking of the innumerable times I had had sleepless nights of chasing ghosts and scrambling to finish my homework just a few years before. If I could handle it then, I would now. For the most part I think my parents bought it, but Jazz and Sam were another story. I can still see the I-don't-buy-it-so-cut-the-crap looks they both sent me as I tried to convince them that I was fine.

They were right though, I wasn't fine.

At home I was only in contact with my family and two best friends, but when I went back to school I was surrounded by hundreds of other students with various illnesses, injuries, and health problems. Walking through a crowded hallway left me breathless and no matter how much I slept I wasn't feeling better. Sam started avoiding me when she wasn't feeling well or when she had small injuries, like paper cuts and kinks in her neck. Jazz's calls came like rain, pestering me with questions and advice despite the fact that she was miles away finishing her own college degree.

And then it got worse. It wasn't just hurt people anymore, I was feeling tired whenever I was touched by someone else. It didn't matter if they were sick or injured or perfectly healthy. A second's contact with their skin and my vision was blurring. I'm sure I looked like the living dead (well more so at least) as I stumbled from class to work to my dorm room. Everything was a haze and I was falling asleep all the time.

It all cumulated about mid-semester. I was running late for my geology class when I cut through a large courtyard in the middle of campus. There was some event going on or something, I don't really remember, and I decided it was quicker to plow my way through the crowd than to go around it. Call me an idiot, but in my defense I wasn't thinking clearly at the time.

I remember twisting my way through the throng of students, trying to avoid touching them as much as possible. I spotted a pocket of open space to my right and riveted my attention on that, so I didn't see the guy with the skateboard coming. We crashed into each other and the contact was too much for me. My body collapsed and I was swept into oblivion faster than I could process what happened.

I woke up in a hospital bed. I had never felt so tired before in my life. I couldn't move, I couldn't speak, I could barely think. Everything felt so heavy and blurry and thick. I was only conscious for brief periods of time before the exhaustion pulled me back into blackness. My mom said I almost died several times before they found a way to care for me without touching my skin. From there I came home and my parents set up a new rule. No contact, not until they found a way to stop my power from sucking me dry.

"Is he sleeping?" Sam's voice pulled me from my thoughts and I blinked slowly, disoriented. My head had sunk to my chest and my body felt heavy. I...dozed off, I realized with faint surprise. I shook my head to clear away the drowsy fogginess and sat up straighter.

"He was when I checked earlier," my mom responded. "You can go check on him if you want."

"Yeah, maybe I will," she said. It took me a moment to process those words but when they did, my heart gave a jolt and I pulled away from the wall. I didn't want them to know I had been listening! That'd only make them worry more. I struggled to my feet, my body feeling stiff and lethargic from almost falling asleep. I just managed to stand up when Sam appeared at the bottom of the stairs. She stopped when she saw me.

"Hey," I mumbled as casually as I could. I rubbed the grit out of my eyes and tried to comb a hand through my hair again. She slowly started up the stairs, her purple eyes watching me intently. I could see the little crease between her brows and when she smiled it was strained.

"Hey, sleepyhead."

I tried to ignore the hints of worry playing on her face and smiled back. At least she didn't seem angry. "I wasn't sleeping," I retorted. _In my bed_, I added silently.

"Well then maybe you should go back to bed 'cause you look like you could use some more." Her tone was teasing but full of underlying concern. I guess I looked worse than I thought. I sighed, both annoyed and appreciative of the sentiment. I debated on whether I should argue against her suggestion but I had just almost passed out a second ago...

"Okay I'll go but only if you come join me," I smiled suggestively. She rolled her eyes and waved a hand in front of her. A year ago she would've slugged me playfully on the arm…

"You wish," she scoffed. "I'll go in your room but the bed is yours." I sighed dramatically and turned back down the hallway.

"Some girlfriend you are."

"Hey, you know why," Sam protested seriously. Then her tone lightened, "Besides, I have standards."

"Yeah yeah," I pushed open my bedroom door and automatically walked to my bed. She followed after me, her eyes scanning the familiar room. It hadn't changed much over the years, still covered in glow-in-the-dark stars and NASA posters. My dreams of becoming an astronaut were shot but that didn't mean I stopped loving space.

"So…how are you feeling?" Sam's eyes were staring at me again, daring me to lie.

"I'm fine," I shrugged. "Just a little tired, but when am I not?" I lounged back on my mattress. She frowned softly but it disappeared and she began to circle the room.

"Your mom says they have a new theory about what's happening."

"Yeah, something to do with core energies and the way my body uses energy to heal others. Sounds a lot like what they thought last summer."

"Well they never said they were wrong," Sam pointed out. I could hear it in her voice, a desperate hope that my parents were right this time. Everyone had it: mom, dad, Jazz, and Tucker. Sometimes I could feel it too, but the cobwebs kept coming back.

They were worst in my room. In here the doubts and anxieties crowded in on my mind, threatening to overwhelm me. What if they were wrong? What if they could never figure it out? What if I could never touch someone ever again? And then fear would turn to anger. Why was this happening to me?! Why couldn't I stop this power from taking my life away? This was so unfair!

And the hardest part was fighting against the part of me that wanted to lash out at my family and friends. It wasn't their fault, it wasn't mine. It just was. I knew that, but I needed something—some**one**—to blame for why I was this way and for why my parents had to make that _stupid_ rule.

No contact. I wasn't sure which would kill me first, my new power or that rule.

Being in my room for hours and days at a time was slowly driving me crazy. I couldn't escape this cycle of uncertainty and frustration. It was especially vicious when I was alone but even now with Sam in the room it was starting to attack me again. I could taste the sour edge of bitterness rise in my mouth and I swallowed hard.

"Danny," Sam's voice was low and questioning. I looked down at my hands in my lap, trying to get a grip on myself. Quietly she crossed the room and I felt her sink down on the edge of my bed. "Danny, what's wrong?" I squeezed my eyes shut as my emotions bubbled over.

"I hate it," I said. "I hate how you all look at me, how you won't come near me."

"You know why," she repeated. "Besides, I'm near you now, aren't I?"

I shook my head. "You know what I mean! You all keep your distance."

"Because we're afraid we'll touch you! If we do…you know what happens."

"I don't care! I don't care about that!" I looked up and our eyes locked. "**Please**, Sam, just do it for me." It was a revisit of our argument from two months prior, an argument spawned from that vicious cycle of emotion and desperation. I asked for a favor, she refused to do it and left mad. I knew why of course, but I couldn't let the subject drop.

The rule had to go. The urge for physical touch was clawing me raw from the insides out.

"I **am** doing this for you! Why do you think I'm stopping myself from holding you right now? You're not the only one who hates this!"

"Okay, so don't stop yourself!"

She stared at me furiously, "It will kill you!"

"I've been saving up," I replied stubbornly.

"What about the thing with Jazz?"

"I feel better."

At this she jumped to her feet. "You can barely stand! You were out all day yesterday! You are **not** feeling better!" I glared back at her, unable to argue but unwilling to give in. The fire in her eyes was replaced with worry and pain.

"Please, Danny, don't ask me to hurt you," she continued in a softer tone. I looked away, my hands curling into fists. Just as quickly as it had risen my anger vanished, and in its wake came a deep longing despair.

"I can't stand it," I whispered. "Not being able to touch anyone. I know all of you love me but how can I feel it? How can I _show_ it when I can't even hug you?" It was all gone, every loving gesture I had come to know.

My mother's kisses on my forehead, my father's bone-crushing hugs, my sister's gentle pats on my shoulder, Tucker's high fives, holding Sam's hand…gone.

"We know you love us, and we love you," Sam said.

"That's not enough," I replied. "Not anymore." Silence fell between us and I thought about these past two years. I was falling apart. My parents might figure it out in time but maybe they wouldn't. My body had to give out at some point. I could keep deteriorating until I died.

It was a distinct possibility despite what everyone said. They clung to theory after theory, hope after hope, but it was getting harder and harder for me to do the same. What if I never recovered? What if my life just slowly wasted away until it ended? What if this was it? Was there anything in this life that I could hold to, that would make it all worthwhile?

My gaze fell on Sam sitting on the corner of my mattress, her eyes downcast. I loved her. I loved my family and Tucker too, but Sam was special. She made my life worthwhile. That was the conclusion I had come to and I had tried to explain that to her. She had refused, but this time I wouldn't take no for an answer.

"Sam," I called. She looked up, her brow furrowing as I leaned closer. Surprise flashed across her face as I closed the distance between us.

"Danny…" she tried to move away but before she could stop me, I slipped my hand behind her neck and pulled her closer. Our lips met and I kissed her. I could feel my energy draining into her, my fingertips grew numb and bright spots fizzled across my closed eyes, but I held on with the dregs of my strength. I would not get this chance again and I wanted it to last as long as it could.

I began to feel lightheaded and my ears were ringing when Sam pushed me away. She was gentle but it was enough to send me onto my back. I half-opened my eyes and smiled lazily. Exhaustion held me down and it was sure to knock me out in a moment, but I was happy. It didn't matter how long I had to stay in bed because of this, I wouldn't trade that kiss for anything.

"Danny!" Sam had stumbled to her feet and was now watching me fretfully. "That could've killed you. Why? Why would you do that?"

Because, I thought silently as darkness crept around me, it was the only way I could keep trying, to keep those cobwebs at bay. And because…

"It was worth it," I mumbled before sinking into unconsciousness.


	12. What Would It Be Like?

**Dizgirl: **It has been far too long since I updated this. *Hangs head in shame* But I promise I've been working on it! I have three partially done but work has been killing me and I haven't had much energy to finish them. And then this dream below decides to pop in on my day off and I wrote the whole thing in one sitting! Don't worry I ran through it a few times/days; tell me if I missed something.

It was a strange dream. Very…surreal. Probably doesn't make much logical sense but I sure enjoyed it. Hope you enjoy and love it too! Disclaimer is in my profile.

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**What Would It Be Like?**

Danny looked up into the endless expanse of baby blue arching over his head. It stretched in all directions, growing wider and wider each second he looked at it. The rest of the world fell away, buildings and trees sliding past the edges of his vision and disappearing from his mind. All he could see was sky.

What would it be like?

The surge of curiosity struck him hard as it usually did on days like this. The sun shining, not a cloud in sight, nothing to do, and no one around him…it made him curious. What would it be like if he decided to fly as high as he could? If he decided to throw off all his inhibitions and all his self-imposed restrictions, what would it be like?

A flash of light sliced across his chest and flung apart, sweeping over his changing body until a different figure stood alone on the hill. Today he would find the answer. He stared upwards. It would be so easy, he could _fall_ into it. Gravity had no hold on him anymore. All he had to do was let go.

He pushed off the ground and hovered for a second, tasting the tingling sensation swelling inside him. Curiosity. Energy. Anticipation. A grin stretched across his face and his eyes sparkled with light. His aura brightened, his body coiled together, he felt the effects of gravity fall away like broken threads. And then…he flew!

He rocketed upwards, his neck aching slightly as he kept his eyes on the blue above him. Air rushed around him, tugging at his hair but unable to find a grip on the skin-tight hazmat suit he wore. He continued higher, relishing in the power pouring from his ghost half as it pushed him farther into the depths of the sky. Gravity couldn't hold him, air couldn't push him back! He could go as far as he wanted!

Slowly the baby blue darkened around him, deepening into richer tones. Cerulean, cornflower, sapphire, indigo…a beautiful rainbow of blue. The air chilled, sound disappeared. He was alone in the sky. He accelerated, reaching for the point that he had set for himself, the invisible barrier he didn't cross. He had never gone beyond that line where the blue slowly gave way to other colors. This is where he had always stopped before. But not this time.

A faint purple stain began to grow across the sky. With a burst of energy he pushed farther and the color spread faster. Blue and purple blurred together like splotches of watercolors on paper. He had reached the point of no return, he had passed his limits. And still he flew higher.

Small holes of darkness began to appear and expand above him, eating up the blue and purple like black fire. Soon he could see pinpricks of light peering through. _Stars_. He exhaled, drinking in the incredible kaleidoscope of colors and lights now laid out before him. Blue and purple and black glittering with diamonds…and still there was _more_. He could push even farther if he wanted. He could press on until all he could see was space, until the sky disappeared completely!

But what would happen if he did?

A thrill of fear fizzled through him and his flight faltered, though he didn't stop. What would it be like? Would he survive in space where there was no air or warmth? He was in ghost form but he was human too. He didn't have a mask like last time, would he survive? And though gravity didn't hold him down, he could let it when he wanted. There was no gravity in space; could he even fly out there? How would he return if he couldn't?

Anxiety, like a small weight, settled in his chest and slowed him down. He was still moving forward, the blackness spreading and the brilliant glow of millions of lights almost blinding him. But now he wondered. What would happen if he didn't stop? Would he be okay? Would he survive? Uncertainty warred with curiosity. Did he gamble his life to see how far he could go? He wanted to. He wanted push on just to see. Because he could go as high as he wanted, higher than anyone, and he wanted to see what it was like. But did he dare risk everything to know the answer?

The air grew thinner, the coldness deeper, the blue was gone. All he could see were stars. And it made him curious…

What would it be like?


	13. I Promise

**Dizgirl**: Look at me, I'm back! That wasn't too long of a wait, right? (looks at date of last update) Ohmygoodness, whoops! Nevermind... Um, anyways, I hope you enjoy this next one. It's angsty...which a lot of them have been lately, but I can't help my dreams. Believe me, I can't.

Oh, before you begin, while I was writing this I listened to "No Surprises" by Radiohead over and over again. It was an amazing inspiration and, if you like music while you're reading, you should definitely look it up! And one more thing, fanfiction is doing something weird to the formatting so sorry if it looks weird! Enjoy and love.

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**I Promise**

A deep guttural growl broke through the silence and pulled me from a dazed half-sleep. I slowly opened my eyes, blinking several times as my surroundings swam in and out of focus. Everything was green...I blinked again and my vision sharpened. No, it was the light that was green, a faint shadowy green. I lifted my head, which had drooped to the side, and surveyed the room I was in with drowsy confusion. There was a bed in the corner opposite of me with a tall white bookshelf next to it. To my left was a desk and to my right sliding closet doors.

_Where am I…?_

The raspy rumble sounded again and my eyes darted to the door in the far right corner. My heart fluttered, the familiar jolt of adrenaline sending little shocks down my arms and legs. _Oh…right. Now I remember._ I pulled myself up off the wall I had been learning against, grimacing as a fiery pain blazed up my right arm. I waited for it to pass, my teeth clenched to hold back a groan.

After a full minute the pain lessened to a manageable level and I gradually relaxed. _At least I didn't pass out this time_, I thought dryly as I looked down at the comforter wrapped clumsily around the arm, green ectoplasm smeared across the pastel floral pattern. My stomach twisted uneasily, images of torn flesh and white bone reminding me of what lay under the makeshift bandage. It was probably still bleeding and I had no way of stopping it. I couldn't decide if that was good or not.

"_Don't let it get you…" _

I sighed, my breath fogging in the chilly air. The memory was vivid in my head. I shouldn't be surprised, it had only happened this morning—or was it yesterday now? Time was difficult to measure here; it felt like years had passed since then but I knew it could only be a day or two since I spoke with them, my loved ones. I could see their faces, worry and fear clouding the hope they tried to show for me. And Ember's eyes glowing dimly as she gave me that warning.

"_If you're going to lose, if you know you have nothing left, run. Don't be a hero. Run and hide. Don't let it get you."_

The memory faded, disappearing like smoke and leaving me with an empty longing at the bottom of my stomach. I would never see them again. Mom, Dad, Jazz, Sam, Tucker… Not even Ember or any of the other ghosts I had fought and befriended over the years. None of them. I felt hollow and listless as that thought rolled over me again.

It was strange how easily I accepted it. No tears, no protest, just numb resignation. This is how it would happen. In fact, I _promised_ that this would happen. Even though every part of my being hated the idea of giving up, I promised them. Their faces flashed before my eyes again and a voice echoed in my head.

"_You have to promise me one thing…"_

I promised.

A third growl ripped and snarled outside of the door, making the hairs all over my body stand up on end and my heart pound uncomfortably in my chest. How much longer would it stand out there, waiting for me to come out and finish our fight? Did it realize that I was never going to do that? That I would keep my promise, follow Ember's advice, and hide in here. Because it was true, I had no chance of winning. The creature was too strong. Even for me.

_Bright red and orange flames chased me across the sky, swelling in large blistering clouds of light from its throat. Green eyes traced my flight through the air. Its mouth stretched out in a grin, revealing rows and rows of teeth as long as my arm, and suddenly the fire was in front of me. I twisted away but I could feel the heat slash across my side like a whip…_

I squeezed my eyes shut, shoving the memory away. I had been outmatched in a way that hadn't happened since Pariah Dark—or maybe I thought of that fight because the circumstances were so similar. Both times an ancient evil was resurrected, both times Amity Park was swallowed into the Ghost Zone, and both times I went to take on an opponent who was more experienced and more powerful than me. But this time I didn't have an ecto-suit, a handful of ghosts, and Vlad protecting my back. This time I was alone.

"_What if you lose?"_

_"Thanks for the vote of confidence." _

"_Danny…"_

_"I told you I'd hide, remember?"_

_"__But you'll be alone in the Ghost Zone with that __**thing**__." _

And I would be until the end. I would be trapped in this room, the lair of some ghost long gone, until I bled out from my injuries or starved from a lack of food. I couldn't decide what would be better, but it didn't matter. Death was inevitable. I knew that from the beginning despite my false bravado; I just couldn't admit it to myself. At least not until…

_I clumsily flew up, one arm wrapped tight around my aching abdomen and the other brightly lit with ectoplasm. I threw the blast at the beast's eyes and tucked my legs underneath my body as it snapped at me again. The monster barely flinched and instead lunged upward, sinking its teeth into my outstretched arm. I cried out as it pulled me down, all thoughts of fighting scattering as the feeling of burning knives dug into my forearm and hand._

_It was so painful I thought I would pass out right there, but then the pain tripled as the beast shook me from side to side like a chew toy. Every impact with its scaly jaw just added to the misery. I started to fade away…_

_And then I was free, tossed into the side of a nearby building, the sharp edges of the bricks digging into my back but nowhere near as agonizing as the wounds down my right arm. I crumpled to the ground, unable to move and barely able to keep breathing. Darkness was creeping in on my vision. It would be so easy to let go…so easy to just give up. _

And I did, didn't I? I gave up and I ran. I ran away. I remember staggering to my feet. I remember seeing the towering mass of the monster above me, its silhouette outlined by the glowing green of the ghostly sky, and knowing that I had nothing left. I remember that feeling, that sinking despair, when I realized it was time to uphold my promise. And I remember flying, the beast at my heels, and grabbing at the nearest purple door. I wrenched it open, I slammed it shut, and it was over.

I kept my promise.

_I turned away from the door, wincing as it trembled and shook. The roars of the monster on the other side made the pictures on the wall rattle and one even fell to the ground. The tinkle of broken glass scattering across the wooden floor was scarcely audible over its frustrated snarls. My eyes fell onto the bed in front of me. _

_I stumbled forward, each step a jolt of fresh pain up my body and down my arm. I could barely move my legs. They felt thick and rubbery but I forced them to keep going. The tip of my boot caught on the multi-colored rug splayed across the floor and I collapsed against the edge of the bed, my face smashed into the comforter. _

I think I might've passed out at that point, I don't really remember. I know I opened my eyes after what seemed like a few seconds but my body felt stiff and achy like it did when I fell asleep at my desk in school. And the ectoplasm…was everywhere.

I shuddered, letting my head fall against the wall. The image was sharp and distinctive. I don't think I could forget it. Ectoplasm…all down my arm, pooled in my lap, dripping onto the floor. It glowed faintly in the emerald light and was icy cold. And then there was the wound itself. The skin, the bone... I pressed my lips together and shook my head. No, I didn't need to think about that.

A wave of dizziness swept over me at the sudden motion and I let out a soft groan as I waited for it to pass. The beast echoed the sound outside the door, the noise lingering in the still air longer than seemed possible. _We're quite the pair_, I thought wryly. Both of us refused to give up (him our fight, me my life) but he couldn't get in and I wouldn't come out. I chuckled weakly. We were at a stalemate, a horribly standstill that would eventually kill me. How stupid was that?

The lightheaded feeling remained and I closed my eyes as the room started to blur. What little energy I had saved up with my last 'nap' was quickly fading. I was about to black out again. I let my head slide along the wall until it rested against the corner. There was no use fighting it. My body was barely clinging to my ghost half and I wanted it to stay that way as long as possible. That way the monster outside the door would stay here.

"_All I want to do is stop it from destroying my home. There's got to be a way."_

"_Look, you fight that thing and it's never gonna stop hunting you," Ember muttered. "__**Never**__. It will keep following you until it gets you or you __**die**__. It will be able to find you no matter where you go."_

"_How?"_

"_Your ghost energy, stupid. What else?" _

_I looked away, mulling over what she said. "So it would follow me as long as I had ghost energy...?"_

"_Hey." I looked up and she gave me a hard look. "Don't get any ideas." _

I sighed as I teetered on the edge of unconsciousness. But that **was **the idea, wasn't it? It's the only thing I could do to keep them safe. More memories bubbled up, fragmented and hazy. Faces, places, voices… I relaxed and let them wash over me as I gradually drifted off.

-"_But you'll be alone in the Ghost Zone with that __**thing.**__"- _

_-I ducked under a blinding flash of fire, cringing as it stung my face and singed my hair.-_

-"_Danny, look!" I glanced up. A wave of green light slowly seeped across the sky, eating away at the blue and blocking out the sun.-_

-"…_Don't let it get you."-_

-"_Someone has to stop it, someone has to fight it. I'm the protector for this town so I'll do it."  
_"_It's too powerful, Danny! You can't win."  
__"Maybe, but I've got to try."-_

_-I sucked in a deep breath and yelled, "Hey Scaly! I'm right here, come and get me!" Its enormous head slowly turned towards me. "Yeah, I'm talking to you!"-_

-"_Danny, I can't lose you," she gently brushed a hair out of my face. "You're my baby boy."-_

_-I gritted my teeth as I twisted the bedding around my arm. The material rubbed against my wound and a hiss escaped my lips.-_

-"_What is that?" I grabbed her arm and dragged her after me.  
_"_Less questions, more running!"  
_"_It—it's __**huge**__!"-_

-"_You have to promise me one thing," she gripped my hand, her eyes boring into mine. "If you start to lose, if something goes wrong, you have to run. Ember told me what would happen to you if it got you." Tears sparkled on her cheeks. "Danny, I can't stand the idea that that would happen to you. Please, do what she told you. Run!"  
_

_My gaze dropped the floor, thinking of what Ember had said. "What if…I can't?"_

_She choked back a sob, squeezing my hand tighter. "Then hide. Don't be heroic. Just promise you won't let it get you." _

A low growl pierced the silence and the wall I leaned against shuddered.

"_I promise." _


End file.
